New Study Says Port’s Economic Value Has Grown

New Study Says Port’s Economic Value Has Grown

A new economic impact study concluded that the economic value of the Port of New York and New Jersey has grown, and this bodes well for the region. The report cites that jobs directly associated with port activity have increased by more than 13 percent since 2012. Personal and business incomes as well as federal, state, and local tax revenues associated with the port have also grown.

Commissioned by the New York Shipping Association (NYSA) and prepared by the firm of A. Strauss-Wieder Inc. of Westfield, New Jersey, the new study reflects port operations as they were conducted in 2014. The data therefore does not include the recent surge in cargo volumes which the port experienced in the first half of 2015.

Factors considered include the movement of goods and people throughout the Port District, and capital investment in the region’s port infrastructure totaling nearly $2.2 billion between 2010 and 2015.

“These investments included substantial work to terminals, roadway, and rail infrastructure, along with extensive expenditures for new equipment,” the report says.

The study goes on to cite the following impacts generated by port industry operations:

  • a total of 336,600 full-time jobs in the region (up from 296,000 jobs in 2012);
  • 190,100 direct jobs;
  • $21.2 billion in personal income;
  • nearly $53.5 billion in business income;
  • almost $7.1 billion in federal, state, and local tax revenues

The Port of New York and New Jersey is the largest port on the East Coast, the third largest port in the United States by volume, and the second largest in value. It serves more than 35% of the entire population of our country. The employers and employees of the port community support the businesses and population of the largest and most affluent consumer market in the world.

“The significant economic contribution the port makes to this region is demonstrated once again in this the sixth iteration of the economic impact study of the New York-New Jersey port industry,” said John Nardi, President of NYSA. “Clearly the maritime industry continues to play a critical role in the vibrancy of businesses in this region.”

A copy of the report can be obtained by downloading it from the NYSA website www.nysanet.org – on the landing page under what’s new.