Trump’s New Tariffs Disrupt Global Trade Flows

Donald Trump’s latest round of tariffs—described by him as “explosive”—have officially taken effect, with China, the world’s leading exporter, hit with a staggering 104% rate.

Alongside China, 60 other nations identified by the U.S. president as the “worst offending” will now face tariffs ranging from 11% to 50%.

These new measures are in addition to the 10% universal tariff Trump rolled out just one week earlier.

The increased duties on Chinese goods were triggered after Beijing missed Trump’s deadline to remove its own retaliatory tariffs on American imports.

According to data from Vizion’s TradeView Global Trade Intelligence Platform, container bookings into the U.S. have plunged 67% over the past week, while export bookings are down by 40%.

“If these numbers are anywhere near correct, this is an extremely large disruption to the trade flows we are seeing,” said Lars Jensen, CEO of container consultancy Vespucci Maritime, in a post on LinkedIn.

Shipping companies are reacting to the instability by cancelling scheduled sailings. The Premier Alliance’s PN4 Pacific route, initially planned to launch in May, has now been postponed indefinitely. Additional suspensions are expected from other carriers and alliances, echoing the measures taken during the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic five years ago.