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CARLISLE, Pa. — Labor Secretary Marty Walsh is optimistic that upcoming labor negotiations for workers at West Coast ports will progress smoothly, noting the critical role that dockworkers and port drivers play in keeping supply chains moving.

The retail sector is urging West Coast port workers and leaders to begin negotiations early on a new labor contract, a move that could prevent potential future delays at facilities that already are dealing with backlogs.

As cargo volumes continued to surge at the nation’s ports in January, the Biden administration on Feb. 23 announced plans to make $450 million available in new grant funding as part of the Department of Transportation’s Port Infrastructure Development Program.

As traditional brick-and-mortar and online retailers reported record holiday shopping numbers, experts say the nation’s transportation sector handled the crush of moving hundreds of millions of packages with relatively little difficulty.

WASHINGTON — Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg is awarding more than $241 million in grants to bolster U.S. ports, part of the Biden administration’s near-term plan to address America’s clogged supply chain with infrastructure improvements to speed the flow of goods.

A Louisiana port under construction aims to pull business from larger facilities — and attract ships traveling through the Panama Canal — with a distribution model focused on moving cargo to Midwest markets.

Severe weather disruptions hit Malaysia and the Philippines, leaving a trail of destruction among nations most prone to natural disasters.

On the East and West Coast and at ports along the Gulf of Mexico, container volumes have skyrocketed, with the Port of Los Angeles — the nation's largest — on track to easily surpass its all-time record set in 2018.

As the nation’s retailers and shoppers gear up for the holiday shopping sprint, two of the nation’s busiest ports, Los Angeles and Long Beach, say they are making progress clearing up the tens of thousands of shipping containers that have been backlogged at their facilities.

The Port of Los Angeles has suspended plans to charge shippers for containers that have been piling up at the facility, an announcement made the day that Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg during a virtual visit pledged support from the Biden administration to help ease stress on the nation’s crowded supply chain.