Global shipping faces crisis due to Trump’s new tariffs

Global shipping markets are taking a major hit from the Trump administration’s recent imposition of steep tariffs.

Shipping stocks remain under heavy pressure after US President Donald Trump announced new tariffs that now stand at nearly 25%. Splash reports.

As of April 3, 2025, this led to one of the biggest falls in the US stock market, causing losses of $3.1 trillion, and today Asian stock markets continued to fall. This is reportedly a level not seen since the Great Depression of the 1930s.

Analysts predict that the container sector will be hit the hardest, as most goods transported in containers will be subject to tariff increases. While tankers and bulk cargoes have not been affected so far, the increase in container tariffs could have a serious impact on trade volumes, reducing global container traffic growth by 0.5%.

“From a shipping perspective, the container sector will be the most sensitive to tariff increases,” said BIMCO’s chief analyst, Nils Rasmussen.

One of the consequences of the introduction of the new tariffs is that the French company CMA CGM may reconsider its large-scale investment plans in the United States. Earlier, the head of CMA CGM, Rodolphe Saade, announced financing worth $ 20 billion over the next four years. But after the introduction of new tariffs on products from the EU, French President Emmanuel Macron expressed doubts about the feasibility of these investments in the current conditions.

Also, according to analysts’ forecasts, these customs measures may prompt Trump to decide to restrict the access of Chinese vessels to US ports, which could worsen the situation for international transport.

These changes in US tariff policy only highlight the significant economic challenges facing global shipping in the context of the “Trump trade war” and changes in global markets.

Recall that earlier, US President Donald Trump signed a decree on the introduction of reciprocal duties on imports “from all countries”, seeking to protect American industry. The base rate of duty will be 10% for most countries, including the UK, Brazil, Australia, Turkey and Ukraine. For EU countries, the rate will be 20%, and for China – 34%. Russia is not on the list of countries for which duties have been introduced.

As USM wrote the day before, the Ministry of Economy explained how Trump’s duties will affect Ukraine.