NJ Port Economy Braces For Potential Impacts Of Trump Tariffs

The Port of New York and New Jersey and its employees are getting more time to prepare for any potential changes to their operations from new tariffs on imports into the United States.

President Donald Trump is moving the deadline for countries to strike trade deals with the United States back, saying new tariffs will go into effect on August 1 if no agreements are reached. This includes a new 35 percent import tax for Canada, announced by President Trump Thursday.

The definitive impact on local jobs, 4,000 of which employees service the Port of New York and New Jersey, is still unclear. Based on the data of goods flowing in and out of the site, the Port of New York and New Jersey could be in a position to be hit more than others.

The Port Authority of New York and New Jersey reported that as of the latest available monthly data, the site was the busiest cargo gateway in the whole country for May. This equates to 774,698 twenty-foot equivalent units (TEUs) of goods being handled throughout the month. This is a 6.5 percent increase from January through May as compared to 2024.

Last year, the site was the largest container port on the U.S. East Coast and the third largest in the country, handling 8,698,526 TEUs, according to a data report from the Port of New York and New Jersey. Only Los Angeles and Long Beach ranked higher.

Furniture, followed by plastics and other similar articles, were the top two imported types of goods through the port in 2024. Vehicles and parts were followed by wood pulp as the two highest ranking exports.

The entire East Coast took in $637 billion in imports last year, much of that flowing through the nearby Port of Philadelphia where longshoremen unpack and load items like produce for grocery stores throughout the country. Holt Logistics, a company that employs around 500 workers on the grounds, offered a blunt look at the potential impacts of Trump's looming tariff deals, pointing out "If those ships are not here, or if the loads on them are light, then the work hours will not be there. It really is the cargo that generates the opportunities."

Global head of technology research at Wedbush Securities goes a step further, telling CBS News that we are "looking at a financial armageddon."

President Trump has been steadfast on heightened tariffs keeping "America First" and ending decades of being taken advantage of by certain countries on international trade deals. In the case of Canada, he is also looking to help combat the flow of fentanyl into the United States, saying that "If Canada works with me to stop the flow of Fentanyl, we will, perhaps, consider an adjustment to this letter." Trump is referring to a post on Truth Social Thursday where he warned Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney that the rate could also go up if they do not comply or retaliate before August 1.

Canada says a "miniscule" amount of fentanyl crosses over to the U.S. from their side of the border, but that they have taken steps to reduce it. Still, President Trump says Canada is an example of a nation that has tariff-and non-tariff trade barriers that hurt American dairy farmers and others, calling the trade deficit a threat to the U.S. economy and national security.

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According to an administration official, an exclusion for goods included in the United States-Mexico-Canada Agreement (USMCA) is expected to stay in place, and 10 percent tariffs on energy and fertilizer are also not set to change, though this is still pending the president's final decision.

This week, President Trump also sent out letters to a host of other countries, outlining the details of what to expect if they do not reach trade deals with the United States by August 1. Many were previously due to receive a blanket 15 or 20 percent tariff on imports into the United States.

List of Countries Receiving Letters

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