From ‘Global automakers hail more ships as trade battles heat up’ by Reuters:
Automakers are scrambling to ship vehicles to the United States to pre-empt possible higher tariffs, according to port data, port officials and logistics companies.
Data from a number of U.S. ports showed a surge in vehicle exports and imports in May, as U.S. President Donald Trump ratcheted up pressure on China and Europe to drop tariffs on U.S. vehicles and make other changes to their trade practices. May is the most recent month for which figures are available.
The Trump administration’s tariffs on $34 billion of Chinese imports are due to go into effect at 0401 GMT on Friday, which is just after midday in Beijing.
At the port of Long Beach, whose auto customers include Toyota Motor Corp and also Daimler AG ’s Mercedes-Benz, vehicle imports were up 3.4 percent in May, but exports were down 24 percent at 1,679 units.
As the United States, China and Europe exchanged tariff threats during the spring, global automakers began “a push to speed up delivery to markets where tariffs are scheduled to increase, such as the U.S.,” said a spokeswoman for Wallenius Wilhelmsen Logistics ASA , which specializes in hauling vehicles by sea.