U.S. imports declined 4.5% in the 12 months that followed the April 2025 “Liberation Day” tariff announcement, while ocean containerized imports fell 4.3%, according to an analysis by Descartes Datamyne based on U.S. Census and bill-of-lading data.
The report compares May 2025 through April 2026 with the previous 12-month period, covering a period defined by the introduction, revision and eventual invalidation of tariffs imposed by President Donald Trump under the International Emergency Economic Powers Act (IEEPA).
The data also points to a significant shift in sourcing patterns. Trade moved away from China and increasingly toward Mexico, Vietnam, Taiwan and several Southeast Asian markets.
Import slowdown narrows U.S. trade deficit
U.S. import growth slowed almost immediately after the reciprocal tariffs were announced, Datamyne said. Imports only increased 1.7% year over year in April 2025, then essentially leveled off between May and July before falling below year-ago levels once the tariffs were in place in August.
The slowdown helped shrink the U.S. trade deficit. The monthly deficit shrunk to $20.4 billion in October 2025, a 39% drop from September, before widening again.
The June deficit was $73.3 billion, 5.6 percent less than in May. Both imports and exports fell in the month, but imports fell more steeply.
Datamyne said imports rebounded 9% year over year in April 2026 after the Supreme Court’s February decision to end the IEEPA tariffs.
The report did however note that the broader tariff picture remained unclear. These IEEPA measures were followed by other trade actions including Section 232 duties on steel, aluminum, autos and auto parts, and more recently Section 122 and 301 measures.
Mexico strengthens its position as China loses share
Mexico also strengthened its position as the top source of U.S. imports, with imports from the country up 6.6% over the 12-month comparison period.
Canada took the other route with Canada-origin imports falling 10.6 per cent. China was even worse, with exports to the United States plunging 40.4%. Datamyne said that this pushed China down from second to third largest source of U.S. imports.
Taiwan and Vietnam were among the biggest beneficiaries of the sourcing shift. Imports from Taiwan origin jumped 60.6% and shipments from Vietnam origin rose 47.8% in the first April 2025 comparison cited by the report. Both countries continued to grow and were in the top five sources of U.S. imports the following year.
India had a more moderate 1.5% rise over the entire comparison period. U.S.-India trade tensions and tariffs on Indian goods have escalated, unwinding earlier growth. Still, the increase moved India into the top 10 list of U.S. import sources.
The figures show how sourcing strategies were affected not only by the general tariff program, but also by the tariff rates in individual countries, carve-outs and negotiated trade arrangements.
The scope of the policy changes is significant, Datamyne said, adding that the U.S. Harmonized Tariff Schedule was changed 32 times in 2025 and another 15 through Aug. 3, 2026. The report said the pace of those changes was a sign of extraordinary policy volatility.
Ocean import volumes remain below previous-year levels
Waterborne import volumes, measured in twenty-foot equivalent units (TEUs), declined 4.3% during the 12 months following Liberation Day.
Importers briefly accelerated shipments in July and August 2025 as companies moved cargo ahead of the tariffs’ effective date. That surge did not last. From September 2025 through April 2026, monthly ocean import volumes remained below the corresponding months of the previous year.
China retained its position as the dominant origin for U.S. ocean imports despite an 18% decline in TEU volume.
Elsewhere in Asia, Vietnam’s waterborne volume increased 16%, Thailand’s rose 24%, and Indonesia entered the top 10 ocean-import origins after recording a 21% increase.
The shift was particularly visible in two major containerized consumer-goods categories, where China lost its leading position to Vietnam:
| Product category | China share | Vietnam share |
|---|---|---|
| Furniture, HS 9403 | 31% | 34% |
| Seats, HS 9401 | 40% | 42% |
China nevertheless remained the largest source for several high-volume import categories. These included auto and truck parts, articles of plastic, toys, refrigerators and freezers, plastic kitchenware, and plastic packing materials.
Auto imports decline as technology shipments increase
The tariff period also changed the composition of U.S. merchandise imports.
Automobile imports fell 9%, pushing autos into second place among the leading U.S. merchandise import categories, behind automatic data-processing machines.
The rise in ADP-machine imports contributed to Taiwan’s growing importance as a U.S. sourcing market. Datamyne said Taiwan accounted for 39% of U.S. ADP-machine imports.
At the same time, Taiwan’s waterborne volume declined 8%, even as the value of its imports bound for the United States increased 83%. Datamyne said the contrast reflected the importance of airfreight for smaller, high-value technology products.
Thailand also became more prominent in the technology supply chain, accounting for 35% of U.S. integrated-circuit imports, according to the report.
Some import categories record dramatic declines
Other product categories experienced far steeper changes.
Imports of articles of precious metals fell 94%, a decline that contributed to Switzerland dropping to 16th place from the U.S. top 10 import origins.
Tariffs affecting pharmaceuticals also weighed on Switzerland and Ireland, Datamyne said.
Trade policy remains unsettled
For importers, carriers and logistics providers, the conclusion of the emergency tariffs program did not mark a return to a stable trade-policy environment.
The report points to continued uncertainty from blanket tariffs, country-specific measures and sectoral duties, alongside prospective Section 301 actions linked to investigations into excess industrial capacity.
Taken together, the findings show that the tariff changes of the past year affected not only the overall volume of U.S. imports, but also the geographic and product composition of the country’s supply chains.
