September container cargo volume broke more records at the Port of Long Beach, port officials said Monday.

Nearly 656,000 containers moved through the port last month, 4.1 percent more than the same month last year and more than any other September in the port’s 104-year-old history. September also capped a record quarter in which 2 million containers moved through the port, a 14.8 percent increase over the same period last year.

Port officials attributed the record activity to seasonal items such as costumes and decorations arriving for the upcoming fall holiday season on their way to retailers. The growth has returned activity to the port to pre-recession levels, officials said.

“In recent months, Long Beach has seen a robust return of once-diverted cargo,” said Jon Slangerup, chief executive for the port. “We greatly appreciate our shippers’ continued confidence in the Port of Long Beach.”

Cargo delivered over the first nine months of the year was up 5.2 percent from the same year-ago period, putting the port on track to surpass 7 million containers, officials said. The port could break the record 7.31 million containers it saw in 2007.

September volume was defined by a 1.9 percent decline in imports in September, with 333,000 containers coming in. Exports increased by 6.1 percent from the year-earlier period. The number of empty containers returning overseas for future trips grew 14.6 percent.

The Port of Los Angeles, which is closed for Columbus Day, is set to release container cargo volumes later in the week.