Question 1

Is America actually importing less, or does it just feel that way?

Accepted Answer

The import bill fell $102B in a year — but the cargo fell only 3.5%. $72B of the fall is the same goods declaring less value, and China is −$101.7B of the −$102B. (What it does not say: It does not say Americans are buying less: by weight, 2024 and 2025 tie as the biggest import years in the record.) Source: Trimtab US Trade Ledger, https://trimtabist.com/asked/importing-less

Question 2

What happened to the value of Chinese goods after the 2025 tariffs?

Accepted Answer

The same goods declare 23% less value per kilogram — within identical customs codes. Wooden furniture clears US customs at $0.65/kg from China and $2.36/kg from Vietnam. (What it does not say: It does not say why — discounting, undervaluation, downgrading and origin-washing are all printed as open candidates, one of them tested and ruled minor.) Source: Trimtab US Trade Ledger, https://trimtabist.com/asked/chinese-invoice

Question 3

Did America's ports really go 24/7 after the White House announcement?

Accepted Answer

No. Night-time berthing at LA/Long Beach: 36.0% before the policy, 34.0% after — while five untreated gateways sat at exactly 30.1% in both periods (n = 21,700 ship calls). (What it does not say: It does not say the policy changed nothing — gate hours and truck appointments are outside this instrument. It says ships did not start arriving at night.) Source: Trimtab US Trade Ledger, https://trimtabist.com/asked/24-7-ports

Question 4

Who took the cargo China lost?

Accepted Answer

Vietnam ships 3.2× its 2018 weight — and a third of China's weight but two-thirds of its value. The electronics went south; the furniture stayed. (What it does not say: It does not say the gains are relabeled Chinese cargo: fingerprint testing finds matching Vietnam gains cover under 5% of China's decline.) Source: Trimtab US Trade Ledger, https://trimtabist.com/asked/who-took-chinas-cargo

Question 5

Is Chinese cargo hiding behind Vietnamese labels?

Accepted Answer

Mostly no. Across every customs code where China lost volume, only two show Vietnam gaining at rerouting speed — under 5% of the decline. One furniture code carries the classic washing signature and is flagged. (What it does not say: It does not clear third countries — Thailand, Malaysia and Mexico routing is untested, and the fourth mechanism stays open at reduced weight.) Source: Trimtab US Trade Ledger, https://trimtabist.com/asked/vietnamese-labels

Question 6

Did the Red Sea crisis reroute American imports?

Accepted Answer

No. The East + Gulf Coast share of gateway imports held 56–59%, flat through the entire disruption window. The null is published with the same prominence as any hit. (What it does not say: It does not say the crisis was costless — rates and transit times are outside this test. It says tonnage did not move between coasts.) Source: Trimtab US Trade Ledger, https://trimtabist.com/asked/red-sea

Question 7

When did the great port queue of 2021 actually begin?

Accepted Answer

October 2020 — a year before the headlines. Anchorage hours at LA–Long Beach doubled that month (5,183 → 11,762) and climbed every month after: 15,338 → 18,826 → 23,170 by January 2021. (What it does not say: It does not say anyone could have priced it then — it says the physics was visible months before the story broke.) Source: Trimtab US Trade Ledger, https://trimtabist.com/asked/when-the-queue-began

Question 8

The famous 109-ship queue “disappeared” in January 2022. Did it?

Accepted Answer

No — it was hidden. Anchorage hours collapsed 25,045 → 5,496 while anchor stays hit a record 863; dwell fell 57h → 6.4h per stay. A November 2021 rule had moved the queue 150+ miles offshore, beyond harbour view. (What it does not say: It does not accuse anyone of deception — moving the queue offshore was the policy's stated intent. It says harbour counts stopped measuring the queue.) Source: Trimtab US Trade Ledger, https://trimtabist.com/asked/hidden-queue

Question 9

How big are the ships calling at US ports now?

Accepted Answer

Depends which coast you ask. The median container ship at LA–Long Beach and Oakland is now 333 m (+39 m and +34 m since 2018) — while Norfolk moved 0 m, Seattle −1 m, and Charleston's median ship shrank 22 m. (What it does not say: It does not rank port quality — draft limits, cranes and channel depth choose the ships, and the divide measures the cascade, not performance.) Source: Trimtab US Trade Ledger, https://trimtabist.com/asked/how-big-are-the-ships

Question 10

What does America import from India — and is the 50% tariff biting?

Accepted Answer

India ships 1.63× its 2018 weight, and its cargo is now worth more per kilogram than China's ($4.0 vs $3.2). But since October 2025 it has run 14–30pp below its counterfactual for eight straight months — roughly 1.5 Mt short. Suppression, not front-running. (What it does not say: It does not say the corridor is dying — it grew two-thirds since 2018, and the suppression claim carries its own kill-switch: three months within ±5pp of donors closes it.) Source: Trimtab US Trade Ledger, https://trimtabist.com/asked/india-tariff

Question 11

What actually fills the containers?

Accepted Answer

Plastics and machinery tie at ~14 Mt a year each — but plastics is $34B and machinery $138B. And a container of knit apparel ($11.6/kg) is worth 58 times a container of salt ($0.2/kg). (What it does not say: It does not cover air or land modes — this is the containerised seaborne slice, a defined scope, not a national total.) Source: Trimtab US Trade Ledger, https://trimtabist.com/asked/what-fills-the-boxes

Question 12

Which chapters did China lose the majority of?

Accepted Answer

All of them. In 2018 China supplied the outright majority of US furniture (71%), glass (67%) and electronics (66%) imports. Today it holds a majority in none of the big chapters — electronics has halved to 32%. (What it does not say: It does not say China is minor — it remains the largest origin in most chapters. It says majority control ended everywhere.) Source: Trimtab US Trade Ledger, https://trimtabist.com/asked/china-lost-the-majority

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