With the Trump administration's high tariffs, goods from China to the United States have dropped sharply, causing major U.S. retailers to warn of an imminent supply shortage.
Over the past few weeks, the trade war between China and the United States has escalated, with each country hiking import tariffs multiple times in the tit tat. Although Trump has suspended tariffs on other countries for 90 days, China has already had a 90-day hiatus as its leaders promised to negotiate with the United States Still an exception.
The U.S. import tariffs on Chinese products are now as high as 145%. Meanwhile, China's tariffs on U.S. products are 125%.
In the harbour of Los Angeles, Long Beach Portlast week's goods accounted for about 40% of all Asian imports compared to the same period a year ago, and last week's goods fell by 10%. This number is expected to continue to decline.
“We are now starting to see the speed at which cargo flows to the ports of Los Angeles,” Eugene Seroka, executive director of the Port of Los Angeles, said at an April 24 meeting of the Commissioner of the Los Angeles Ports.
U.S. retailers were eager to import goods into the country before President Trump's massive tariffs came into effect, causing a surge in imports since last summer. Now, the tariffs on 145% of goods made from China are about twice as expensive as last year,” Seroka said.
According to another estimate, container bookings from China to the U.S. fell by 60%.
The decline is usually during busy times when importing to the United States, “we usually see an increase in full bookings because it is the beginning of the shipping year,” said Nathan Strang, director of shipping at FlexPort. “This is when homecoming items and Halloween items start to come in.”
More importantly, retailers may have stored enough stocks that can last for several months, Seroka said, adding that in the summer, consumers may find many products are not in stock. Various cargo flows through the ports of Los Angeles and eventually enters families across the United States
A port spokesman told CBS MoneyWatch that the port's top five categories are furniture, auto parts, clothing, plastics and footwear.
Major retailers and small agencies have warned that consumers may soon face tariff-related inventory shortages. Once a “tariff surcharge” is added, items that land on store shelves may suffer price increases.
Torsten Sløk, a chef economist at private equity firm Apollo Global Management, said in a recent blog post that tariffs would result in "empty shelves in U.S. stores in a few weeks, similar to consumer shortages for consumers and companies that use Chinese products as medium goods."
Last week, Walmart and Target CEO privately warn President Trump believes his comprehensive tariff policy could lead to a gap in store shelves if it is still in effect.
“We held productive meetings with President Trump and his team and thanked for the opportunity to share our insights,” Walmart In a statement said.
"We remain committed to bringing value to American consumers in a productive meeting with President Trump and our retail peers to discuss trade pathways."
Two retailers have previously publicly warned that taxes could bring higher prices to consumers.
"We never want to raise prices," Walmart CFO John David Rainey told CNBC.
Last month, Target CEO Brian Cornell told CNBC: “Consumers may see prices rising in the next few days due to planned tariffs on imports from Mexico.
Logistics Group also reported a sharp decline in freight from China.
On April 14, April 14, bookings from China to the U.S. fell by 45% compared to the same period a year ago, according to container tracking service Vizion.
"This dramatic decline coincides with two key two key developments: the U.S. tariff announcement on April 4, followed by retaliation measures announced by China on April 5. The result is that when shippers suspended the mid-term cycle, rebooked a wider booking freeze to redefine, timelines, schedules and broader trade strategies," Vizion said in a report. ”
Freight booking platform Freightos noted that operators are canceling sailing from China in a quick clip because they cannot fill ships with cargo. The group noted that the price of marine containers fell from $8,100 for 40-foot containers in July 2024 to about $2,327.
Many importers are suspending goods until their tariff plans for Mr. Trump are clearer. Freightos' survey of 195 small importers found that 33% of businesses plan to suspend freight in response to tariffs.
Kristin Bear, owner of a U.S.-based lingerie company Kilo Brava, hopes Mr. Trump has a soft stance on tariffs so she can continue Made in China Clothing She said she imported them to the United States and she couldn't afford the 145% tariff imports, and if they don't lower the tariff, "we just have to give up on the goods and close the company," she said.