At first glance, the direct impact on Stockton of President Donald Trump’s decision earlier this year to slap higher tariffs on metals being imported to the United States may seem too abstract to comprehend.
But that abstraction gains clarity when you know the recent history of a ship that finally arrived at the Port of Stockton on June 13 after sitting stranded in San Francisco Bay beginning May 4.
“They were delayed trying to sort out how the new tariffs would affect this particular ship,” port Director Richard Aschieris said last week. “What happened is that they haven’t gotten clearance on future shipments, so the parties that were involved have to work out their own internal agreement of who is going to cover what cost.”
