Concerns over Trump presidency impact on container shipping rates

Peter Sand, head of analytics at Xeneta, said Donald Trump’s victory in the US presidential election has sparked concerns in international trade as importers fear another spike in container shipping rates.

Xeneta said Trump has pledged to impose import tariffs of up to 20% on all goods entering the US and additional tariffs of 60% to 100% on goods from China.

The last time Trump raised tariffs on imports from China during the trade war in 2018, container shipping rates jumped more than 70%, Xeneta data showed.

The response of US shippers is to increase imports before Trump can impose new tariffs. Previously, in 2018, tariffs on imports from China were only 25%, but now there is the possibility of increasing to 100%, increasing the incentive for importers to import early.

Peter Sand continued to comment that the negative impact of tariffs during Trump's first term in 2018 was clearly shown through the increase in container freight rates of up to 70%. Importers will be concerned that this situation will recur.

Concluding, Peter Sand emphasized that 2024 has been a difficult year for US importers, who have suffered severe disruptions due to the Red Sea crisis and escalating shipping rates.

There is also a risk of further strikes at ports on the US East Coast and Gulf Coast in January next year.

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Source: Phaata.com (via Xeneta)

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