SAN FRANCISCO, Dec. 4, 2012 (RISI) -Port terminals in Los Angeles and Long Beach remained shut this morning because of a strike by clerical workers - and reports today from the East Coast said shippers plan a "congestion surchage" as contract talks in the East remained difficult over a labor pact that is to be completed by Dec. 29.

Some steamship lines called for a $1,000 per 40-ft container congestion surcharge, effective Dec. 30, a contact said.

The port employers are negotiating with port workers over a new contract. A strike was averted at the start of October by a tentative agreement and the Dec. 29 deadline was set.

A contact today said that in the East, where up to 14 ports along the East and Gulf coasts are impacted by the contract, the International Longshoremen's Association was "holding firm" and negotiations "are not friendly."

On the East Coast, the largest port system is comprised of the New York/New Jersey terminals, which is the second largest US recovered paper export port system in the USA.