Drewry: Global Container Shipping Volume to Fall 1% in Response to Trump Trade Policies

Maritime consultancy Drewry said on Thursday that it expects global container port volume to fall 1% as a direct result of U.S. trade policies.

That would be the third drop in global container shipping demand since London-based Drewry began recording that data in 1979. Container volumes fell 8.4% during the global financial crisis in 2009 and 0.9% in 2020 when the COVID pandemic was declared.

The Trump administration's new policy includes blanket tariffs of 10% on goods from most countries and 145% ones on products from China. China and other countries have hit back with tariffs on U.S. goods.

"Assuming that 2/3 of current tariffs remain in place, U.S. imports from China could fall by 40%," the consultancy said in a slide presentation.

China dominates U.S. imports of consumer goods, industrial products and furniture.

Relocation