Reports: Texas ranks first for trade commodities value, exports

(The Center Square) – Ports of entry in Texas accounted for $1.1 trillion in international trade last year, according to new data released by the Texas Comptroller’s Office. It’s an increase of nearly 68% since 2020.

Texas’ 32 ports of entry and two intermodal logistical facilities account for 20% of all U.S. trade. Its expansive coastline and shared border with Mexico, seaports, international bridges, railways, airports and interstate highways have helped propel Texas’ top ranking nationwide for overall value of trade commodities and commodity exports since 2002.

AllianceTexas, a 27,000-acre development in north Texas, accounts for $834.6 million of the total evaluated in a new analysis by the comptroller’s office, representing a nearly 551% increase from 2016, it says. AllianceTexas is the primary port of entry for the southwestern United States, where global goods are shipped directly from the ports of Los Angeles, Long Beach and Houston through intermodal rail containers.

“Ports are key to Texas’ economic strength – they power trade, jobs and innovation,” Acting Comptroller Kelly Hancock said. “AllianceTexas is a clear example of how forward-thinking infrastructure keeps our economy strong and competitive worldwide.”

AllianceTexas is one of two intermodal logistics facilities in Texas that connects air, ground and rail transportation for businesses. The rail network there enables Alliance to move roughly half of Texas’ freight tonnage, it says. The facility also integrates corporate campuses, industrial, retail, healthcare and other properties. It’s also home to two major warehouses for Amazon and Walmart.   

The top export commodities by value from AllianceTexas last year were machinery and mechanical appliances ($324.8 million), electric machinery and equipment ($276.6 million) and aircraft and spacecraft equipment ($116 million). The top import to AllianceTexas was special classification provisions ($46.2 million). 

The Port of Laredo remains the top port in the country out of more than 450 airports, seaports, and border crossings with $339 billion in total trade last year, according to Census Bureau data. Total trade last year was valued at $339.5 billion of commodities, an increase of 5.98%, the port says. Exports totaled $128.26 billion, up 4.12%; imports were valued at $210.77 billion, up 7.14%, the port says.  

Port Laredo’s top five trade partners accounted for 98.62% of its total trade through July. By comparison, the United States’ top five trade partners accounted for 44.36%, the port says. The port’s top five trade partners are Mexico, China, France, Japan and Nicaragua. 

Texas’ trade through its international bridges with Mexico helped propel its international trade to more than $547.9 billion in total value of commodities, more than 51.5% of Texas’ trade value, the comptroller’s office says.

The two largest airports in Texas, Dallas Fort Worth International Airport and George Bush Intercontinental Airport in Houston, represent 72.1% and 24.2%, respectively, of Texas’ airport/intermodal trade, the comptroller’s office says. 

Port Houston ranks first in the country in exports with $129.9 billion in commodities flowing out of it, the comptroller’s office says. Total tonnage represents continued growth with a record-setting volume reported in July, the port announced last month. Increased container volumes remain steady; grain and bagged goods also saw massive increases in August. 

The Houston Ship Channel, which includes eight public terminals and more than 200 private facilities, reported 5,415 deep draft vessel calls through August, remaining “the nation’s busiest waterway and the backbone for U.S. energy, manufacturing, and agriculture,” the port says. 

For total trade value, Port Houston is the fifth-ranked port of entry in the country, reporting more than $223.5 billion in trade.

Port Houston was the fifth busiest container port in the U.S. last year for cargo capacity of 1.89 million TEUs (twenty-foot equivalent unit), worth more than $415 billion. Port Freeport ranked 29th with TEUs worth $10 billion. Port Freeport posted the largest TEU growth in the country last year of nearly 48%, according to a Descartes Systems Group analysis.