Inbound container traffic is up at the nation’s major ports, but the congestion that plagued the docks last year does not appear to have returned, according to the National Retail Federation’s new monthly Port Tracker report. Port Tracker, which is produced by the data analysis firm Global Insight for NRF, was developed in response to the severe port congestion experienced in 2004, particularly at West Coast ports, and other recent port disruptions that have threatened the retail industry’s supply of imported merchandise.

In the initial August Port Tracker, the report found that congestion levels currently stand at “low” for 75% of the nation’s major ports, while 25% were at “medium” and none were at “high.” A low ranking means “business as usual” with no serious congestion, delays or diversion of cargo anticipated. Medium indicates a warning of potential for congestion at the port or the inland transportation system. High indicates existing congestion, significant delay and/or diversion of cargo.

Nationwide, ports covered in the survey handled 1.23 million Twenty-foot Equivalent Units (TEUs) of container traffic during June, the most recent month for which historical data is available. The figure is up 11.2% from the same month in 2004. Traffic is expected to grow to a peak of 1.32 million TEU in October, up 7.6% from a year ago, before settling to 1.23 million TEU in December, up 6.8% from last year. One TEU is a 20-foot cargo container or its equivalent.