Trade Policy

With one year ending and a new one soon beginning, there is often a sense of a change or a fresh start coming. While that may sound good on paper, when it comes to the current state of the freight, or logistics, economy, it is more than likely that that prospects of meaningful shifts, or changes, in the current landscape, may not represent anything more than wishful thinking.

The United States and China appear to have found at least some common ground on a few different issues, during this week’s meeting between President Donald Trump and President of the People’s Republic of China Xi Jinping, at the APEC meeting in South Korea.

DHL Global Forwarding, a subsidiary of global logistics and express delivery provider Deutsche Post DHL focused on air and ocean freight, announced it has rolled out a new consolidated clearance service, which it said is geared towards U.S. imports to support retailers as they deal with trade shifts and tariff complexity.

Following a social media message issued by President Trump late last week, which said that the United States would halt trade talks with its second-largest trading partner, Canada, another social media post by Trump indicated that the U.S. plans to raise tariffs on Canada by 10%.

Any signs of progress being made on the trade front between the United States and its second-largest trade partner, Canada, appear to be squelched, based on a social media post issued by President Trump last night.

The latest DHL Global Connectedness Tracker shows trade expanding faster in early 2025 than in any half-year since 2010.

Logistics Management (LM) Group News Editor Jeff Berman recently spoke with Matt Muenster, Chief Economist for Green Bay, Wisc.-based Breakthrough, an innovator in transportation management, dedicated to creating transparent and fair strategies for the world’s leading shippers. Muenster provided Berman with an overview of trade and tariffs, the industrial economy, and Peak Season, among other topics. 

Following a 90-day pause rolled out in May, which was set to expire today, the White House said yesterday, in an Executive Order, that tariffs on United States-bound imports from China will remain at current levels for another 90 days, through November 10.

The overall outlook remains fluid, in terms of the pace and also significance of trade deals being made up to the August 1 deadline. John Lash, group VP of product strategy for connected supply chain platform services provider e2open, provided LM with his analysis of what shippers may be in store for when the new tariffs formally take effect.

The firm reported that June imports, at 2.65 million TEU (Twenty-Foot Equivalent Units), declined 0.8% in June, with the second quarter, at 8.02 million TEU, up 1.4% annually, following a 9.1% first quarter gain. Through the first six months of 2025, total imports came in at 16.16 million TEU, for a 4.6% annual gain.

While it is likely true that not many people thought the soon-to-be-ending three-month pause on the White House’s “Liberation Day, ” or reciprocal, tariffs would be a low-key affair, with just more than a week to go to the July 8 deadline, the global supply chain, once again, is preparing—and very likely about to deal with more—for a hefty amount of uncertainty, coupled with what could be viewed as a continued lack of clarity, relating to next step in...

The firm reported that April imports, at 2.78 million TEU (Twenty-Foot Equivalent Units), increased 10.3% annually, matching March’s annual gain percentage. On a year-to-date basis through April, imports are up 7.9% annually, at 10.93 million TEU.

While there was a large amount of speculation regarding an anticipated drop in United States-bound import declines driven by the myriad trade policy and tariff actions put into action by President Trump since his return to office, that speculation has become reality, based on sentiment from various industry stakeholders.

The move spares electronics from 145% import tax as companies warn of price hikes.

In a social media message posted earlier today, President Trump said that the U.S. has changed course, in terms of the scope and timing of its tariff implementations.