Is Virginia Getting its Mojo Back?

Good news for Virginia ports: container cargo shipments increased 8.5% in 2016.

The Port of Virginia saw an 8.5% surge in container traffic in 2016, making it the fastest-growing port on the East Coast and second fastest in the country, trailing only Los Angeles, reports the Virginian-Pilot.

Said port Chairman Jon Milliken: “We outstripped other East Coast ports; we outstripped the West Coast ports. We outstripped everybody in terms of growth.”

The Pilot article does not explain the increase, but the growth coincided with major capital expansion programs designed to increase port throughput as well as the long-awaited opening of the Panama Canal expansion, which expedites the movement of deep-draft mega-ships. With the deepest channels of any East Coast port, Hampton Roads enjoys a competitive advantage in serving the big ships.

In other good economic news, as noted in Virginia FREE newsletter distributed this morning….

Swiss food confectioner giant Nestle S.A., has announced the move of its U.S. corporate headquarters from Glendale, California, to Arlington.

Air India has initiated nonstop service between Washington Dulles International Airport and Delhi.

Virginia’s unemployment rate dropped to 4.1%, even as the state’s labor force swelled by 17,000 workers as discouraged workers began re-entering the workforce.

Admittedly, the gains are all anecdotal. But pile together enough anecdotes, and they add up to a real trend.