Businesses across the US and China are scrambling to find ways to skirt President Trump’s steep tariffs on Beijing imports – and some are resorting to risky tactics to run the goods through other countries, The Post has learned.
US manufacturing orders from China dropped by nearly two-thirds in the first week of April, versus a week earlier before Trump announced his stiff “Liberation Day” tariffs, according to logistics data provider Vizion. Trump reportedly signaled on Wednesday that he may slash the 145% China tariff by more than half.
In the meantime, some importers stuck with goods on the water have re-routed shipping to Canadian and Mexican ports with the hope of paying the lower 25% tariff imposed on the US’s North American neighbors, according to Jon Monroe, a Shanghai-based shipping consultant.
“Right now people are parking containers until they can figure out what’s happening,” Monroe told The Post.
Elsewhere, major US companies with big footprints in China are looking to rapidly shift manufacturing to other Asian countries — including Vietnam, Malaysia, Indonesia, Taiwan, South Korea, Japan and India — which are currently enjoying a 90-day pause on reciprocal duties, leaving them with a 10% universal tax.
“It is a well-known fact there are consulting firms in China that will help you move your production down to Vietnam or Malaysia,” said George Kochanowski, a supply chain expert and co-founder of Staxxon, a supplier of shipping containers.
“They will provide the warehouse, that you don’t have to build yourself, and they will provide bilingual employees that speak the local language.”
Some importers already stuck with Chinese-made goods are trying to skirt duties by storing them in so called bonded warehouses in the US, which allow them to avoid paying tariffs — at least temporarily. But that comes with its own risks.
“It is something that people are talking about now even though it’s expensive to store stuff in these warehouses,” Bobby Shoule, vice president of JW Hampton Jr. & Co., a 160-year-old logistics company in Jamaica, Queens, told The Post.
The Port of Long Beach in California has received “multiple requests for bonded warehouse facilities” for cargo that is already on the water and can’t be suspended, Noel Hacegaba, chief operating officer of the port told The Post.
“However, there is some concern that importers – particularly smaller importers – may decide to abandon cargo and not pay their service providers once it arrives at US ports or try to re-export it back to its origin,” Hacegaba added.
Some shipping companies are also trying to undervalue the merchandise they are delivering to the US by misleading customs officials, according to Monroe.
“I believe customs will catch that,” he said.
Monroe adds that “A lot of Chinese companies are asking Vietnamese companies to change the label on products that are made in China” — a trick that was employed in 2019 during President Trump’s first term when he first imposed tariffs on China.
Hanoi has warned that it will crack down on the bogus “Made in Vietnam” labels for any “illicit trans-shipments,” according to reports. South Korea also has formed a special task force to prevent illegal export attempts, Reuters reported.
After an investigation in March, the South Korea Customs Service said it caught $20.8 million worth of country-of-origin violations in the first quarter of 2025 — with US-bound shipments accounting for 97% of the total, according to the report.
While companies try short-term moves to skirt Trump’s trade taxes, long-term diversification of the supply chain is vital, said Aditya Mishra, managing director of BAT VC, a $100 million fund that supports start-ups in the US and India, told The Post.
“Even if he reduces the tariffs on China, this event makes it risky for companies to stay in China and hope this doesn’t happen again,” said Mishra, a former Yahoo executive.
Vice President JD Vance met with Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Monday to discuss a deal on tariffs. In February, New Delhi and Washington agreed to more than double trade between the countries to $500 billion by 2030.
“India is going to benefit significantly from manufacturing leaving China,” according to Mishra.
“Everybody is looking for ways to adjust ” added former Ohio Republican Congressman Jim Renacci, who owned car dealerships among other businesses.
“How do I adjust my supply chain so I still get the same product necessary to keep my business operating? Is there a way of getting them through outlets other than China?”
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