Photo = Yonhap news

 

[Alpha Biz= Kim Jisun] High tariffs imposed by the Trump administration on Chinese goods are expected to severely impact China’s container shipping industry, with cargo bookings projected to drop by as much as 60%, according to new forecasts.

 

 

On Thursday, the South China Morning Post cited a report by maritime analytics firm Linerlytica, which predicted that over the next three weeks, freight bookings from China could fall by 30% to 60%, while bookings from other parts of Asia might decline by 10% to 20%.



Linerlytica attributed the sharp drop to deteriorating sentiment in the container shipping market amid intensifying U.S.-China trade tensions. The firm noted that the U.S. government's 90-day tariff waiver for countries other than China is "woefully insufficient to revive trans-Pacific shipping volumes."



It also warned that the upcoming Labor Day holidays in Asia would further depress May’s cargo demand, and shipping lines might be forced to cancel additional sailings to prevent further declines in freight rates.



According to China’s Ministry of Transport, container throughput at Chinese ports fell by 6.1% during the week of April 7–13 compared to the previous week. This marked a reversal from early April, when volumes had risen 1.9% before the trade war began to intensify.



Danish maritime research firm Sea-Intelligence also reported on April 13 that trans-Pacific carriers are increasingly resorting to "blank sailings"—temporary cancellations of scheduled shipping routes—in response to the shrinking demand.

 

 

 

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