Discover key insights and actionable strategies to help you tackle today’s trade and cost challenges.
Highlights from the Report:
- President Trump announced an additional 10% tariff on China in March increasing the total to 20% since the start of 2025.
- It is being anticipated that only 15% of the countries with a U.S. trade imbalance and tariffs on U.S. goods will be assigned reciprocal tariffs starting April 2nd.
- The President has also signed an executive order taking effect April 2nd, which applies a 25% tariff (on top of all existing tariffs) on all goods from any country that buys oil from Venezuela.
- The ISM® Prices Index registered 62.4% in February, indicating raw materials prices increased for the fifth straight month.
- Rubber futures have dipped below 200 U.S. cents per kg, as the industry balances the effects of ongoing trade tariffs and demand concerns of over supply.
- Global economic expansion slowed for a second successive month in March with employment falling for the first time in three months and business confidence sinking to a seven-month low.
- Global ocean schedule reliability (measuring 60+ carriers) dropped by -2.3% to 51.5%.
- Ocean container rates have been falling steadily since the start of the year.
- In February U.S. ports processed the second-highest number of containers for the month, trailing only February 2022.
- The U.S. Trade Representative (USTR) is drafting a proposed fee structure targeting Chinese-built ships and operators. The fee would impact every major ocean carrier with ships calling U.S. ports, ultimately increasing costs for U.S. consumers.
Learn more about these key issues in the full report linked below.
📄 Report Length: 3,648 words
⏱ Estimated Reading Time: 10.5 minutes
