NEW YORK, NY March 21, 2007 —New York's appetite for all things imported drove the volume of cargo containers handled by the Port Authority to record levels last year. WNYC's Bob Hennelly has more.

Last year, the Port brought in $93 billion in imported cargo from all over the world. The volume of imported beer alone jumped 28% over the prior year. Meanwhile, the value of cargo shipped out was worth just $31 billion. The lower dollar did help close the regional global trade imbalance slightly, with solid growth in the overseas sales of US auto parts and machinery.

Yet for every American auto that headed overseas from the Port of New York, 6 came in its place from countries like Japan and Germany. And by weight and volume, another major export product the region sent the world was recylables. China remained our top trading partner, followed by Italy. For WNYC, I'm Bob Hennelly.