Biden meets with CEOs to address bottlenecks at ports

President Joe Biden met Tuesday with the CEOs of major US retailers and delivery companies to discuss alleviating current supply chain bottlenecks and speeding up deliveries.

During the meeting at the White House with the heads of Walmart, United Parcel Service, FedEx and Target, Biden received updates "on the efforts they're taking to speed up throughout (the) entire goods movement supply chain and discussed how shelves will be well-stocked this holiday season", a White House official said, without providing further details.

The meeting took place after the Biden administration earlier Tuesday announced a plan to address the supply chain problem that would tap into the infrastructure bill just passed by Congress.

The plan doesn't provide immediate relief to the backlog currently at US ports. A senior administration official told CNN that although Biden has yet to sign the bill, "there is work going on right now to actually get these projects teed up, get these programs teed up and out the door".

The White House said that the infrastructure deal would provide $17 billion to fix existing issues at the nation's coastal ports as well as inland ports and ports of entry at the US border. Some US ports of entry will be earmarked for $3.4 billion of modernization and expansion projects within 90 days.

The White House said that the plan "will increase federal flexibilities for port grants, accelerate port infrastructure grant awards, announce new construction projects for coastal navigation, inland waterways, and land ports of entry; and launch the first round of expanded port infrastructure grants funded through the Bipartisan Infrastructure Deal".

It is Biden's second attempt in the past two months to alleviate the bottleneck at US ports. In October, he instructed ports on the West Coast to stay open 24 hours a day. Some retailers and shipping companies also pledged to work around the clock to tackle the backlog.

However, those efforts have so far stalled because there has been a lack of interest from truck drivers — who are in short demand — and shipping companies to comply.

The supply chain congestion has been most severe at ports in Southern California. The Port of Los Angeles together with the Port of Long Beach handle 40 percent of the shipping containers imported into the US, the White House said.

Long Beach Executive Director Mario Cordero told China Daily that the plan unveiled Tuesday "allows us to fast-track infrastructure projects that will speed the movement of goods and allow our ports to grow sustainably amid forecasted cargo growth into the future. The president clearly recognizes how important ports and the supply chain are to the US economy."

Under the plan, the Georgia Port Authority will be able to redirect more than $8 million of funding to finance new pop-up container yards in Georgia and North Carolina.

When finished, it will allow the Port of Savannah to transfer containers a couple hundred miles inland to clear dock space and accelerate the transfer of goods. Georgia is the fourth-largest US hub for seaborne imports.

The administration's programs to modernize ports and marine highways will use more than $240 million in grant funding within the next 45 days.

In addition, the Transportation Department will identify coastal and waterway projects for the US Army Corps of Engineers construction that are eligible for $4 billion in funding.

Yinmeng Liu in Los Angeles contributed to this story.