There’s no end to the tariff woes this year, and it’s directly affecting your wallet. The White House administration has doubled the Section 232 iron and aluminum tariff from 25% to 50%. Reciprocal tariff holds on all countries, other than China, expire on July 9th and default to the original country-specific reciprocal tariff rates set in April on “Liberation Day”. China’s tariff hold expires on August 12, and US importers are scrambling to get their goods clear of US customs prior to the deadline. Shipping lines are taking full advantage of the shipping onslaught and have pushed through a large General Rate Increase on containers from China to the US on June 1, with another scheduled for June 15. Peak Season Surcharges are also expected to increase the cost of containers from China to US. Bonded warehouses and Foreign Trade Zones are in short supply as Americans struggle to navigate the continuously changing landscape of the supply chain. Stay on your toes and keep up with the latest news because the levies here today may just be gone tomorrow. Let’s take a look at how US & China ports are faring this month.
CHINA PORTS
From Shanghai to Hong Kong and all cities in between, the ports in China are packed. Manufacturers in the US are frantically trying to get their goods on the water and sailing to arrive and clear US customs prior to August 12. This is causing some significant congestion at all China ports. Vessels are waiting to berth and load. You may experience rolling schedules, delayed schedules or changes in vessels due to overbooking and congestion at port.
US OCEAN PORTS
For the moment, US Ports do not appear to be experiencing significant delays. Upon arrival to any given US port, you can expect about 1 to 5 days’ delay until your goods are unloaded and move on. Norfolk and Baltimore are the most delayed. Expect this wait time to jump significantly in the next two weeks as vessels start arriving in volume to beat the August 11 tariff date. It’s also the start of peak season when volumes get heavy for the upcoming holiday season. Plan for at least 2 weeks’ delays as we edge closer to July and August.
US RAIL
Busy as always, the US rails are already experiencing congestion. You’re looking at about a week to 10-day delays before your goods start to move at the most popular rail yards such as NY/NJ, SEA/TAC, LA/LB, OAK, and VAN. As the peak shipping season continues, more congestion and longer wait times are expected.
IMPORTANT DATES
When shipping, here is a list of important dates you want to keep in mind when it comes to goods entering the US and tariffs. Not all tariffs start and end at the same time, so it very much depends on what country your goods are coming from and what date they clear customs in the US.
June 27th: it takes about 45 days, including delays, to arrive and clear customs from China to the East Coast. June 27th is the 45-day mark to get your East Coast goods on the water and sailing to beat the rise in China tariffs. This date is not a guarantee. It’s just a baseline date marking a 45-day transit. If you can get your goods on the water sooner, we encourage you to do so.
July 8th: 90-day pause ends on ROW (Rest of the World) 10% Reciprocal tariffs. This is the last day to clear customs before tariff rates go up for all countries of the world, other than China. Each country will have it’s own specific tariff rate to be announced by the administration.
July 9th: EU reciprocal tariffs go up to 50% on this date. They are currently at 10%.
July 18th: it takes about 17 days to get from China to the West Coast with no delays, but as the West coast is the shortest way to get to the US from China, congestion is expected. Having your China goods on the water and sailing by July 18 will give you 24 days to arrive and clear customs on the West Coast. Again, this is just a baseline date to go by. If you can ship sooner, you should.
August 11th: 90-day pause ends on China 10% Reciprocal tariffs. This is the last day to import China goods to the US under the 10% Reciprocal tariff. It’s expected that the China tariff will go up to 35% on August 12th, but this updated rate is new information and not yet official. We’ll keep you posted as details emerge.
