It was Christmas in July for the Port of Long Beach, which on Thursday reported record monthly cargo traffic as the peak pre-holiday shipping season got off to a strong start.

Cargo container volumes surged last month to more than 690,240 containers, an 18 percent boost from the same month last year. It marked the busiest month in the port’s 104-year history, officials said.

The port saw increases in both imports and exports. The number of imported containers rose 16.2 percent to more than 345,900 containers. Exported containers grew by 15.9 percent to nearly 143,900 containers, despite the stronger U.S. dollar making U.S. exports more expensive overseas.

Port officials said the big month bodes well for the rest of the busy pre-holiday season, when importers bring in orders to fill store shelves during the year-end shopping rush.

“We’ve worked closely with all of our stakeholders to prepare for our peak season, which is off to a great start with very strong back-to-school shipments and our best export month in a year,” said Port of Long Beach Chief Executive Jon Slangerup in a statement.

Through the first seven months of the year, cargo volume in Long Beach has climbed 2.8 percent over the same period last year.

The Port of Los Angeles is expected to release July cargo numbers Friday.