Port Houston reported record cargo and container volumes in 2025, closing the year with overall tonnage growth despite market volatility.
The port handled 54,491,066 short tons of cargo across its public terminals in 2025, a 3% increase over the prior year and the highest annual total in its history. Performance was supported by a diverse cargo mix, including petrochemical and industrial shipments, manufacturing-related freight, and consumer-driven imports.
Annual container volumes reached 4,303,345 twenty-foot equivalent units (TEU), a 4% increase over 2024 and a record high. Container volumes were down 3% in December. Loaded exports rose 7% for the year, while loaded imports increased 1%.
Port Houston, which serves as the advocate and strategic leader for the Houston Ship Channel, oversees a system that includes more than 200 private terminals and eight public terminals. The channel remains the nation’s largest port by waterborne tonnage and the busiest by vessel traffic.
Vessel activity along the Houston Ship Channel totaled 8,099 arrivals through December, representing a 4% decrease compared to 2024. Barge activity reached 209,616 moves for the year. Increases in chemical tanker traffic, bulk cargo, and general cargo reflected ongoing demand for petrochemicals, crude oil, plastics, and machinery.
“In a year shaped by uncertainty across global trade, it’s remarkable that at Port Houston we reached record levels of both TEUs and total tonnage,” said Charlie Jenkins, CEO of Port Houston. “This is a reflection of the strong industrial and consumer market in our region and the low-cost, high-service, low-risk environment we offer our customers.”
Infrastructure investments in 2025 focused on expanding capacity and improving efficiency at the port’s public terminals. Near the end of the year, Port Houston completed Wharf 7 at Bayport Container Terminal, adding 1,000 feet of berth space and more than 500,000 TEUs of additional capacity. Five new rubber-tired gantry cranes were delivered to Bayport during the year, with six more scheduled to arrive in March, completing a 16-crane order and increasing the total RTG fleet to 163 across Bayport and Barbours Cut Container Terminals.
The port also completed full implementation of RTG-O technology at its container terminals in 2025, resulting in productivity improvements of up to 20% and enhanced cargo flow. Operational activity remained strong, with approximately 2.5 million trucks served and more than 3.3 million transactions completed through December. Average truck turn time was about 40 minutes.
At Port Houston’s multi-purpose terminals, steel volumes totaled 4,176,166 short tons in 2025, an 8% decline from the prior year. General cargo volumes were 6% lower than in 2024, while bulk cargo volumes increased 12% year over year.
