Port Laredo accounted for slightly more export-import transactions than O’Hare International Airport in April, according to WorldCity’s analysis of the latest U.S. Census Bureau data, released this week.
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Port Laredo was the nation’s top gateway for U.S. merchandise trade for a second straight month in April, suggesting stability may be returning to cross-border trade, according to my analysis of data released this week.
Port Laredo was the nation’s top port in 2023 and 2024, but fell behind Chicago O’Hare International Airport and New York’s JFK International Airport in 2025, despite record trade for the fifth year in a row.
These two airports outperformed Port Laredo and all other US airports, seaports and border crossings due to increases in imports of AI-related computer equipment and GLP-1 drugs for O’Hare and exports and imports of gold for JFK.
Their growth in 2025 was so extraordinary – O’Hare’s trade grew 31.52% and JFK’s 53.52% – it was the first year that not just one but two US airports topped the ranking of all US airports, ports and borders.
Port Laredo posted record total exports and total imports in April, according to a WorldCity analysis of the most recent U.S. Census Bureau data available.
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But in April, for the second month in a row, Port Laredo again took the top spot, with transactions totaling $34.16 billion. Its exports and imports rose more than 20 percent compared to last April.
O’Hare was second with $33.92 billion for an overall increase of 12.47%, while JFK was third with $29.10 billion, its transactions falling 17.14%.
My company, WorldCity, does business with Port Laredo and does business with or does business with a number of other top US airports, seaports and border crossings, including No. 4 Port of Los Angeles, No. 6 Los Angeles International Airport, No. 11 Dallas Fort Worth International Airport, No. 14 Port of Corpus Christi, No. No. 20 Port of Virginia and a number of others.
Looking at the top three “ports,” what factors could change this trajectory toward normality?
O’Hare International Airport, while lagging behind Port Laredo, had record exports and imports.
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For O’Hare, it could be another surge in investment in AI infrastructure, perhaps unleashed by pending public registrations from Anthropic, which owns Claude. OpenAI, which owns ChatGPT. and embarrassment.
The broad category of computers was the country’s top import in 2025 for the first time, ahead of heavily taxed passenger vehicles, ubiquitous mobile phones and petroleum.
JFK’s overall trade was down from last April, but the month’s export total – driven mainly by gold – was second only to April 2025’s total.
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For JFK, it could be a bigger disruption, like an escalation of war in the Middle East or Ukraine, or an attempt by China to take over Taiwan.
More disruption could send the price of gold soaring and shipments to rise again. Gold usually moves between JFK and Switzerland, where it is often processed and stored, and England, where London is a world market. 2025 was the best year for gold price appreciation in almost half a century.
During the first four months of the year, JFK is actually the number one port, ahead of Port Laredo by the narrowest margin and O’Hare.
On an annual basis, New York’s JFK International Airport is the nation’s top port. She finished second in 2025 and took third place in April this year.
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Year-to-date, JFK’s total trade was $126.85 billion, which, despite a drop of $43.91 billion, was slightly higher than Port Laredo’s four-month total of $126.42 billion, which was an increase of $11.05 billion from the same time period in 2025.
If the current trajectory continues, Port Laredo will surpass JFK on a YTD basis when the May data is released.
Port Laredo’s computer component exports rose more than 800% in April, compared to a 171.03% increase for all border crossings and 150.85% for the country as a whole.
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Port Laredo’s 20.41% increase in April exports to $12.45 billion was driven by more than 100% increases in three of its top outbound shipments that were headed overwhelmingly across the border to Mexico:
No. 2 ranked computer components, up 801.97% to $1.00 billion
No. 3-ranked natural gas, which travels through a pipeline, rose 289.60% to $453.70 million
Computers ranked No. 5, up 137.25% to $282.91 million
On the import side, the 20.59% increase to $21.70 billion was driven by:
Computers, which surpassed motor vehicle parts to take the top spot with a 105.86% increase to $4.27 billion
No. 3 ranked commercial vehicles, up 42.41% to $1.05 billion
Mobile phones and related accessories in 4th place, up 68.50% to $1.01 billion
Overall, Port Laredo’s exports increased $2.11 billion while imports increased $3.71 billion. Of its total transactions, 97.62% concerned Mexico.
Port Laredo’s return to the top spot is about more than a month’s performance. It’s about what it signals. After a year where extraordinary forces — from AI-driven demand to geopolitical shocks — reshaped the rankings in 2025, April hints at a rebalancing toward U.S. trade fundamentals.
Whether that holds will depend on forces largely beyond Laredo’s control: the pace of AI investment, the stability of global supply chains and geopolitical tensions that can quickly redirect high-value trade flows through airports rather than cross-border overland.
