The conflict in a lose-lose situation!
The
sharp end of foreign policy…
US
Retailers Still Stocking Up!
Just
ahead of possible tariffs
Imports
at the nation’s major retail container ports will remain at high levels this
summer but are expected to grow only modestly compared with last year’s rush to
bring merchandise into the country ahead of scheduled tariff increases,
according to the monthly Global Port Tracker report released today by the
National Retail Federation and Hackett Associates.
“Retailers
still want to protect their customers against potential price increases that
would come with any additional tariffs, but with the latest proposed tariffs on
hold for now and warehouses bulging, there’s only so much they can do,” NRF
Vice President for Supply Chain and Customs Policy Jonathan Gold said.
“We
will still see some near-record numbers this summer, but right now no one knows
whether there will be additional tariffs or not. We hope the restarted
negotiations with China will result in significant reforms rather than more
tariffs that tax American companies and consumers.”
President
Trump announced after meeting with China’s President Xi Jinping last month that
he would hold off on tariffs on an additional $300 billon in Chinese goods
while negotiations between the two countries resume. Coupled with tariffs
imposed over the past year, the new round would tax almost all goods the United
States imports from China.
“Imports
of consumer goods continue to grow as importers purchase items in expectation
of further increases in tariffs, the cost of which will be borne by the
American consumer,” Hackett Associates Founder Ben Hackett said. “Trade has
become the sharp end of foreign policy, and we continue to believe that this
will ultimately damage both sides of the conflict in a lose-lose situation.”
U.S.
ports covered by Global Port Tracker handled 1.85 million Twenty-Foot
Equivalent Units in May, the latest month for which after-the-fact numbers are
available. That was up 6 percent from April and up 1.4 percent year-over-year.
A TEU is one 20-foot-long cargo container or its equivalent.
June
was estimated at 1.87 million TEU, up only 0.8 percent year-over-year. July is
forecast at 1.93 million TEU, up 1.3 percent; August at 1.96 million TEU, up
3.4 percent; September at 1.89 million, up 1.1 percent; October at 1.94 million
TEU, down 4.5 percent, and November at 1.88 million TEU, up 4.3 percent.
The
August number would equal the total seen last December just ahead of a
scheduled January 1 tariff increase that was ultimately delayed until this
spring, and would be second only to the 2 million TEU record set last October.
But the small year-over-year increases expected in the next few months compare
with double-digit growth in multiple months last year as retailers rushed to
import Chinese merchandise ahead of expected tariff increases.
Imports
during 2018 set a record of 21.8 million TEU, an increase of 6.2 percent over
2017’s previous record of 20.5 million TEU. The first half of 2019 totalled an
estimated 10.6 million TEU, up 2.8 percent over the first half of 2018.
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