May cargo shipments through the Port of Long Beach fell almost 21 percent from a year earlier (and those numbers weren't all that great). Inbound traffic was down 22 percent and outbound was down 23.8 percent (inbound represents a far greater percentage of the pie). May traffic was a little better than the previous month, though month-to-month statistics are often misleading because of seasonal factors. No word yet from the Port of L.A. The sluggish activity reflects how retailers view the climate for consumer spending going out the next few months. As we're picking up from other indicators (airline bookings, for example), the economy is looking to be, at best, anemic.