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Shipping containers from China are seen at the China Shipping (North America) Holding Company Ltd. facility at the Port of Los Angeles, located in Wilmington, California, as of February 4, 2025.
The recent decline in trade between the United States and China, driven by significant tariffs imposed on Chinese goods during President Trump’s administration and growing recession concerns, is becoming evident in major port statistics. Notably, container vessel traffic to the ports of Los Angeles and Long Beach has experienced a substantial decrease.
Data from the week ending May 3 shows that the number of freight vessels departing from China bound for Southern California, a primary hub for Chinese and Asian trade entering the U.S., has plunged by 29% week-over-week, as reported by Port Optimizer, a vessel tracking platform. Furthermore, year-over-year comparisons reveal an alarming 44% decline in vessels scheduled to arrive during the week of May 4 to May 10.
This information is regularly updated based on shipping manifests that declare their intended port of entry. The data pertains to vessels either planned to depart Asia or already en route to the specified ports.
For the upcoming week, only twelve vessels are expected to dock, a significant drop from twenty-two ships scheduled during the week of April 20. In terms of shipping volume, a total of 62,568 TEUs (twenty-foot equivalent units) are anticipated to arrive for the week of May 4 to May 10, a stark contrast to the 120,608 TEUs recorded in the week of April 20 to April 26.
The repercussions of the slowdown in maritime shipping are beginning to impact inland transportation services connected to these ports.
“We are witnessing a critical juncture on the West Coast,” stated Ken Adamo, chief of analytics at DAT Freight & Analytics. “In analyzing the available truck loads compared to the number of trucks, we’ve observed a dramatic decrease, with over 700,000 loads disappearing nationally in just the past week compared to two weeks ago,” he explained.
This drop in vessel arrivals aligns with an uptick in canceled sailings by ocean carriers along Pacific routes, including the ports of Long Beach, Los Angeles, Oakland, and Seattle. This information was relayed to clients through an alert from Worldwide Logistics detailing these blank sailings.
The Gemini alliance, comprising Maersk and Hapag Lloyd, reports a cancellation rate of 24.39%. This is followed by the Ocean Alliance, consisting of CMA CGM, Cosco Shipping, Evergreen, and OOCL, with an 18% cancellation rate. The Premier Alliance, which includes companies like Ocean Network Express, Hyundai Merchant Marine, and Yang Ming Marine Transport, stands at a 15% cancellation rate. Additionally, MSC and ZIM are currently observing a 10% rate of canceled sailings.
Ocean carriers are attempting to navigate the decline in orders catalyzed by tariffs and rising trade tensions. Recent reports from CNBC indicated that approximately 80 blank sailings have been noted from China as demand continues to dwindle, leading carriers to either suspend or modify their transpacific shipping services.
Source
www.cnbc.com