The impacts of President Donald Trump’s tariff policies are being felt at the Port of Virginia, but not as much as experts expected back in the spring.

The Trump administration has imposed tariffs on imports from more than 90 countries ranging from 10% to 50% as of Aug. 6. Total shipping container volumes from January to July 2024 dropped about 9% over the same period this year, and the Port saw the lowest volumes in July since 2020, according to public Port of Virginia data.

“Cargo moving through this port is a bit soft and that softness is attributable to the overall uncertainty in the industry,” Joe Harris, a spokesperson for the Port of Virginia, said in an email. “We expect our totals to be mixed — up-and-down — until the various tariff actions have been resolved, be it through trade deals or new tariffs that are set in place.”

Uncertainty is still the presiding feeling for economists and industry leaders, said Vinod Agarwal, a professor of economics at Old Dominion University and deputy director for ODU’s Dragas Center for Economic Analysis and Policy. With tariffs being imposed inconsistently, affecting ports differently based not only on who you’re trading with but what goods they’re trading, “no one really knows what the effective tariff rate is,” he said.

“We do know that the volume of trade at the port is down … I believe overall the volume of trade by tonnage will be lower than it was last year,” Agarwal said. “We do not know what the details are, so it’s very difficult to pinpoint what the effects will be but the effects will vary from port to port.”

Agarwal estimated in May that the impacts of the tariffs would be felt by July, but this week he said that consumers have not yet seen the full impact on prices. Part of this is due, he said, to businesses buying more in March – causing the second-busiest March on record – in order to prepare for the tariffs, but there’s also another factor at play: fear of Trump.

“Businesses and CEOs are reluctant to make announcements that they will increase prices simply because – I call it the Trump effect – he will single them out,” Agarwal said in an interview. “(Price increases haven’t shown up due to) the reluctance on the part of many companies to be on the wrong side of one man.”

Bob McNab, chair of economics at ODU, told The Richmond Times-Dispatch that the tariffs “will represent one of the largest tax increases on American businesses and consumers over the past 50 years” if they are allowed to stand.

In spite of this uncertainty, the port is moving forward with capital infrastructure plans, according to Harris.

“We’re working to expand market share and collaborating with the ocean carriers and cargo owners to ensure efficient and consistent delivery of service,” Harris said.

Gavin Stone, 757-712-4806, gavin.stone@virginiamedia.com

https://www.dailypress.com/2025/09/10/port-of-virginia-trump-tariffs/