USA major ports began to experience congestion in October 2020 when orders were accelerated for imports to the USA as Covid-19 lockdowns had people staying home and consumer spending increased. As the months marched on, imports surged by 20% during 2021, resulting in ships backing up off the west coast.

January 2022 saw the peak of the backup, with 105 ships waiting off the ports of Los Angeles and Long Beach. While the ports remained congested, the number of vessels waiting off ports began to fall in what was anticipated to be a weaker second half of 2022. Long Beach handled 588 742 TEU in November, down 21% from November 2021 and a considerable drop from the 800 943 TEU in January 2022, closing off 2022 as the second-best year, outdone only by last year.