US Import Slowdown: Craig Fuller Warns of Worsening Conditions and Layoffs

U.S. Import Slowdown

• ⚠️ Import activity into the United States is expected to worsen significantly, with a projected 35% drop in year-over-year freight volume over the next two weeks.
• 📉 This slowdown is attributed to companies canceling orders, partly due to unexpectedly high potential tariffs, with some facing rates as high as 145%.
• 📦 Many companies are canceling voyages to the U.S. because the import margins no longer make financial sense.

Impact on Trucking and Logistics

• 🚚 The trucking industry is anticipated to lose a substantial amount of volume, estimated at around 6% of total U.S. trucking volume, within two to four weeks.
• 📌 The logistics sector, employing 9 million people nationwide and half a million in Southern California alone, faces significant job impacts.
• 📉 Expectation of mass layoffs within the logistics industry due to the reduced import activity.

Retail and Consumer Effects

• 🛍️ Retailers are impacted as they are not taking inventory of pre-ordered products and are not ordering new items.
• 🛒 Consumers may notice inventory stockouts starting as early as late June, and certainly in July and August, particularly when shopping for back-to-school items.