Goods at Sea Dodge Tariffs Until May, Those Warehoused Taxed When Taken

With a whirlwind of changes to U.S. tariffs, there’s a scramble to understand how the duties will impact goods in transit on container ships and awaiting pickup at U.S. ports. As of April 10, ocean cargo ships bound for the United States are exempt from President Donald Trump’s April 5 order imposing a 10-percent tariff against all imported goods until May 27 if they can provide proof that the goods were loaded onto the vessel before midnight on April 4 and have been at sea since. That is also the case for the April 9 reciprocal trade levies against China, according to an April 8 Customs and Border Protection (CBP) “clarification.” Goods loaded onto ships originating in China before midnight on April 8 are exempt from tariffs until May 27....