Latest Supply-Chain Shift Favors Trading Partners Who Are Closer to Home

When we last analyzed the fallout from shifting global supply chains, we highlighted the looming growth in U.S. East Coast port traffic as imports from Southeast Asia increasingly bypassed gridlocked West Coast ports. From July 2020 to November 2021, monthly imports from Southeast Asia to the East Coast rose by an average of 32% above 2019 levels. Trade route traffic has continued to shift as higher shipping costs, tariffs and pandemic disruptions roil overseas supply chains. Meanwhile, trade clarity provided by the United States–Mexico–Canada Agreement is driving import growth with trade partners closer to home, specifically Mexico.