Some of the last cargo ships carrying Chinese goods without crippling tariffs are currently drifting into US ports. Come next week, though, that will change.
Cargo on ships from China loaded after April 9 will carry with them the 145% tariff President Donald Trump slapped on goods from that nation last month. Next week, those goods will arrive, but there will be fewer ships at sea and they will be carrying less cargo. For many importers, it is too expensive to do business with China.
Yet China is still one of America’s most important trading partners. It’s where we get most of our clothes, footwear, electronics and microchips, which power appliances, thermostats and anything else that beeps.
Businesses are making a difficult choice: Continue selling products from China at more than double their previous prices or stop selling those products altogether. For consumers, that means some products will be hard to find or may be too expensive to buy.
Empty port in Seattle raises concerns of empty shelves in coming weeks — SeattleTimes pic.twitter.com/Rj5OEP0sEC
— NewsWire (@NewsWire_US) April 28, 2025
