Container volume surged last month to near-record levels at the Port of Los Angeles as international imports into the port continued to grow.

Port officials said August marked the second busiest month in its 110-year history, with cargo movement increasing 6.1 percent for the month year over year.

“I think consumer confidence in spending is up and that’s one of the reasons we’re seeing an uptick in international trade,” said Phillip Sanfield, a port spokesman. “Other reasons aren’t easy to define but the restructuring of global shipping alliances earlier this year as well as improvements in our infrastructure have all have contributed to the growth we’ve seen.”

Imports increased 5.1 percent to 432,479 20-foot equivalents (TEUs) and exports rose 4 percent to 159,197 TEUs, including a 9.2 increase in empty containers. Overall August container volumes were 847,857 TEUs, port officials said.

“We are grateful to our terminal operators, labor force, supply chain stakeholders and our cargo owners for the record-breaking container volume trend we have been experiencing over the past 20 months,” port Executive Director Gene Seroka said in a statement.

– Shwanika Narayan