Reference News, July 23 - According to the website of Spain's "El Economista" on July 21, President Trump's tariff policy is achieving a goal that has been most difficult for economists to understand: putting U.S. international trade in a dilemma. The impact of the tariff policy is already evident at ports. According to Bloomberg News data, the number of container shipments received by U.S. ports in June has declined for the second consecutive month, marking the first negative growth in the second quarter since 2020.

According to the monthly report released by trade analyst John McCauley on the 20th, the number of containers entering the United States fell by 7.9% year-on-year in June, while it fell by 6.6% in May.

The report compiled data from the top ten U.S. ports.

The sharp decline in May and June completely offset the nearly 10% growth achieved in April. At that time, companies tried to accelerate procurement before the tariff measures took effect, so that they could use inventory in the coming months. But now this effect has run out, resulting in a 1.8% annual decrease in container transportation volume in the second quarter.

McCauley pointed out that he has only seen two periods when annual container transportation volume decreased, namely during the 2008 global financial crisis and the pandemic. And both of these declines were temporary. McCauley said, "The decline in 2025 will be attributed to the tariff measures, and there are currently no signs that this will be a temporary decline."

The analyst also pointed out that after a 15% increase in 2024, the total imports for 2025 are likely to decline, "which will be one of the most severe annual declines in the history of U.S. container transport for 60 years."

The weakness of maritime trade at U.S. ports is also reflected in the freight rates for containers shipped from China to the U.S. West Coast, which have declined for five consecutive weeks.

McCauley pointed out that a 25% reduction in U.S. container transport is "completely possible," which would "directly lead to a $51 billion decrease in the U.S. annual foreign trade volume." According to data provided by McCauley, the total value of container cargo transported through U.S. ports in 2024 was $2.2 trillion. (Translated by Wang Meng)

Los Angeles Port (Xinhua News Agency)

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