Transpacific shipping routes are set to witness a dramatic uptick in container traffic over the coming weeks, as businesses rush to front-load shipments to take advantage of a temporary reduction in US and Chinese tariffs, analysts said.
The de-escalation of the trade war came earlier than many expected, container shipping intelligence firm Linerlytica said in a note on Monday, which is “setting the stage for a surge in transpacific cargo volumes in the next three months”.
The wave of demand will be even more intense due to the fact that many companies already have significant backlogs of goods ready to ship, with US importers adopting a “wait-and-see” strategy in recent weeks as they watched for any potential move to roll back tariffs, said Lars Jensen, the founder of Vespucci Maritime, in an online post.
China, in turn, has agreed to cut its retaliatory tariffs on US imports from 125 per cent to 10 per cent. The deal will come into effect on Wednesday.
