Weak cargo figures

This is what a sluggish economy will get you. Actually, the container numbers coming out of the Ports of Los Angeles and Long Beach have been weak going back to last summer. For February, imports into Los Angeles were down 9.8 percent, while Long Beach saw a 7.6 percent drop. Exports, meanwhile, jumped 29.6 percent in L.A. and 36.1 percent in Long Beach. That’s, of course, thanks to the falling dollar. Trouble is, there are still far more containers coming in than going out. Here are the full L.A. and Long Beach reports. Economist Jack Kyser points out that the February numbers were impacted by shutdowns in Asia for New Year’s celebrations. "We wait to see what March brings," he writes in the Los Angeles County Economic Development Corp.'s weekly e-EDGE report.