US importers rush in items from China as Trump tariff risk looms

By Lisa Baertlein and Ellen Zhang

LOS ANGELES/BEIJING (Reuters) -U.S. imports from China completed the yr sturdy after some corporations stockpiled shipments of attire, toys, furnishings and electronics forward of President-elect Donald Trump’s plan to impose new tariffs that might revive a commerce warfare between the world’s financial superpowers.

Trump, who has threatened to slap tariffs of 10% to 60% on items from China, takes workplace on Jan. 20. Throughout his first time period, Trump primarily focused Chinese language elements and elements. Economists and commerce consultants predict his subsequent wave of tariffs might apply to completed items.

“There has thus been an uptick within the exports of ultimate items from China to the U.S., as importers intention to front-run attainable tariffs on shopper objects,” stated Frederic Neumann, chief Asia economist at HSBC in Hong Kong.

Chinese language commerce officers on Monday stated December exports surged to document ranges.

The big rise was partly a mirrored image of considerations about escalating commerce protectionism, Lv Daliang, spokesperson for the Chinese language customs administration, stated at a press convention in Beijing.

U.S. seaports dealt with the equal of 451,000 40-foot containers of products from China in December, a year-over-year improve of 14.5%, in keeping with commerce information provider Descartes Programs Group (NASDAQ:DSGX).

That capped a yr when U.S. imports of bedding, plastic toys, equipment and different merchandise from China rose 15% from 2023, in keeping with Descartes.

Helen of Troy Ltd (NASDAQ:HELE), vendor of OXO kitchen devices, Hydro Flask water bottles and Vicks over-the-counter medicines, contributed to that improve. It has been constructing strategic inventories aimed toward lowering publicity to tariffs, executives stated on an earnings name final week.

“The inauguration is actually days away. I feel we’ll get some extra readability as soon as President-elect Trump is in workplace,” Helen of Troy CEO Noel Geoffroy stated of recent U.S. tariff insurance policies.

Software and electrical and plumbing provide distributor MSC Industrial (NYSE:MSM) Direct sources roughly 10% of its stock from China. It’s stocking up on its hottest merchandise that could possibly be in danger from new tariffs whereas growing promotional campaigns for items made in the US, executives advised buyers final week.

Teasing out the true impact of the danger of Trump tariffs on total import positive aspects is tough as a result of corporations carefully guard commerce information.

RESILIENT DEMAND

Additional complicating the evaluation, resilient U.S. customers have been fueling demand. Some importers additionally introduced in security shares to guard in opposition to disruptions from Houthi assaults on transport close to the Suez Canal commerce shortcut and a labor dispute at seaports on the U.S. East Coast and Gulf of Mexico.

In the meantime, Trump additionally has threatened to tariff items from many different international locations, together with North American neighbors Mexico and Canada.

Walmart (NYSE:WMT), the largest consumer of container transport, is among the many retailers that cargo information analysts say have ramped up imports in latest months. Walmart didn’t touch upon that evaluation.

A number of classes of U.S. imports from all geographic sources posted significant positive aspects throughout the fourth quarter, in keeping with S&P International Market Intelligence.

Textiles and attire jumped 20.7%; leisure merchandise, mainly toys, gained 15.4%; dwelling furnishings elevated 13.4%; and family home equipment and shopper electronics posted positive aspects of 9.6% and seven.9%, respectively, in keeping with S&P.

Client staples classes resembling family and private care, in addition to meals and drinks, rose 14.2% and 12.5%, S&P stated.

Michael O’Shaughnessy, CEO of Factor Electronics Corp., stated there was a year-end rush to get items into the US.

Factor imports elements, primarily from China, for its flat-screen TV meeting plant in Winnsboro, South Carolina – America’s final large-scale tv manufacturing plant. It additionally imports completed televisions. The corporate constructed buffer shares when dockworkers have been threatening to close the East Coast ports it makes use of.

Nonetheless, O’Shaughnessy stated there is a restrict to how a lot he is prepared or ready to herald.

“There’s simply no place to place all the things,” he stated. “Additionally, there are working capital constraints. Every single day it sits there it prices you cash.”