Over the last few months, several listeners and readers who spend a lot of time around the Cape Fear River have asked why they haven’t seen very many — if any — of the large container ships that usually call on the Port of Wilmington.
These are the massive ships, often traveling through the Panama Canal from ports in Asia, that dominate the view of the port when they sail up the Cape Fear River. They’re loaded with multimodal shipping containers: 20- or 40-foot metal boxes that can be attached to trucks and trains, and are seen stacked like enormous Legos on the decks of ships.
The short answer is, yes, there have been fewer of these container ships.
The ports measure container traffic in TEUs — or Twenty-foot Equivalent Units — the size of a 20-foot cargo container (many of the larger 40-foot containers on semi-trailers and ships are thus two TEUs). During the 2022-2023 fiscal year, the Port handled 320,000 TEUs – that’s a lot of Legos, though an order of magnitude less than Savannah or the Port of Virginia, which handle millions of TEUs annually.
Those numbers started to level off and dip two years ago, down 8% from 2023-2024 and roughly 2% from 2024-2025, according to reports from the North Carolina State Ports Authority. More recently, the volume of cargo containers has dropped by closer to 30%. That drop started in July 2025 — which is also when the largest class of ships taking the Panama route, the ‘neo-Panamax’ vessels, stopped coming to Wilmington.
Based on suggestions from economists we spoke to, WHQR asked North Carolina Ports if the drop-off was due to “tariffs, consumer sentiment, changes in shipping routes,” or some combination. A spokesperson told us it was a “combination of factors, including those mentioned.”
Back in June, N.C. State Ports Authority Executive Director Brian Clark told the Greater Wilmington Business Journal that changes in shipping volume and routes could be attributed to both President Trump’s tariffs and the overall increase in consumer goods — but could not cite either as a concrete reason. Clark noted that these factors had driven shipping companies to focus on more profitable routes.
Still, it’s clear the numbers were trending down, and earlier this year, NC Ports revised their goals for this year. That was part of a larger five-year strategic plan designed to guide the ports — including Wilmington, Morehead City, and the inland Charlotte facility — through 2031.
The Port of Wilmington actually exceeded its revised estimate slightly, according to a spokesperson. Officials had initially expected the annual volume to drop from 289,000 TEUs to 193 TEUs, but landed at “nearly 200k,” according to a spokesperson.
Officials also noted that “refrigerated trade remained a bright spot, alongside continued strength in bulk, breakbulk, and project cargo volumes.” Bulk cargo can be pumped or poured directly into specialized holding areas; NC Ports' strategic plan calls for growing or expanding cement, fertilizer, and forest products (the port currently features a facility for the controversial wood pellet company Enviva). Break bulk can be irregular-sized items; the ports are looking to increase numbers for paper, steel, lumber, and other items.
Despite the setbacks over the last year, NC Ports remains ‘ambitiously’ optimistic about cargo shipping. With a baseline of 5% annual growth, officials are aiming at a “realistic ambition” of an average 12% growth, or 75% over five years, with a goal of about 337,000 TEUs in 2031. (An “aggressive ambition” scenario targets 96% growth over five years, which would mean 378,000 TEUs in 2031.)
Another question WHQR received was whether the cargo container downturn over the last year would impact NC Ports’ pursuit of a massive and contentious dredging project of the Cape Fear River.
The $1.3- billion plan involves dredging roughly 28 miles of the Cape Fear River — essentially from the river’s mouth to the port — from 42 feet to 47 feet, making it more accessible to the largest class of shipping vessels. Congress has earmarked $830 million, but North Carolina hasn’t appropriated its share of $340 million yet. The project is currently stalled — though not cancelled — due to objections from state regulators, based on environmental and pollution concerns. A decision from the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, which is handling the project, is expected in the fall. If it moves forward, it’s slated to start in 2030 and take about six years.
Asked if the recent cargo volume drop-off would impact the project, a state ports spokesperson said, “No.”
“Regardless of near-term market conditions, we remain focused on our mission to strengthen North Carolina’s economy by serving as a gateway to global markets. That means not only maximizing the opportunities and cargo volumes available to us today, but also ensuring our investments and operations align with the future of maritime transportation. Accommodating larger, deep-draft vessels is essential to maintaining the Port of Wilmington as a competitive port-of-call for U.S. East Coast–Asia services and ensuring North Carolina remains at the forefront of global commerce,” they said.
