Matson provides inside look at severe tariff disruptions to transpacific trade
- Transpacific volumes sank 30% in April but Matson expects need to avert ‘empty shelves’ will force US importers to resume more shipments
- Market in transpacific is ‘all over the place’ in terms of pricing, and still ‘in the early part of readjusting’
- Exports from Vietnam to US have rebounded to pre-tariff-announcement levels; some cargo has also returned to China-US route after initial pause
The transpacific container trade situation is far from settled for freight pricing, volumes or cargo origins, says Matson chief executive Matthew Cox. The duration of the disruption remains unknown and the longer it lasts, the ‘bigger the snapback’
