Letter from the Editor

By Mark Szakonyi

CBP is increasingly seen as more of an enforcer than a facilitator of trade.

It’ s getting costlier and more difficult to import goods from Asia into the United States.

After two years of tariffs, logistics managers at US importers confide they feel a target on their backs from the federal government— expressed during a roundtable of nearly two dozen shippers in September— for facilitating trade. And with container spot rates this peak season grazing levels seen during the pandemic, importers have been forced to pay multiples on their contracted cargo just to get loaded.

That’ s left some feeling like they have less leverage heading into the next annual service contract season. Higher inland costs are also increasingly bleeding into international shipping, as federal regulation pushes up truck and drayage rates and tightens capacity.

US Customs and Border Protection( CBP) is increasingly seen by importers as more of an enforcer than a facilitator of trade. That heavier hand at ports of entry is exposing shippers to not only delays from cargo holds, but disputes with marine terminal operators and employers over demurrage. One importer of consumer goods from China said he expects 1 % to 2 % of his inbound containers to be placed in a customs hold in 2027.

President Donald Trump’ s executive order in June hardened the CBP’ s approach by raising bonding requirements and requiring shippers to show they aren’ t shell companies by disclosing domestic assets. Many in the trade community fear that the resulting rule as proposed will go farther by requiring more disclosures, namely of non-US customs paperwork.

“ If you require every importer to collect the exact foreign export declaration, small businesses will be hurt. We do not have direct contact with foreign filers. It takes weeks to get it,” Adeola Justina Jayeola, the founder of EcoWise Logistics, wrote in a public comment on the CBP rulemaking.“ This will push [ small business enterprises ] out of direct importing.”

When the spring import surge began, it took time for ocean carriers to bring back tonnage shifted to more profitable trades, starting the peak season with a space deficit even before Asia typhoon season began in June. Two North America-based executives at separate ocean carriers said they are increasingly competing with other regional heads serving China services to Latin America and Oceania.

With space at a premium, ocean carriers, to widely varying degrees, are using the leverage, holding shippers to contracted volumes and shrugging off clauses disallowing peak season surcharges and other accessorial fees. On-time reliability from Asia was 9 % to the US East Coast and 27 % to the West Coast in September, due to port congestion in Asia, according to data from Xeneta’ s eeSea, adding the further sting of late shipments to higher transport prices.

Frustrated with having to pay the contracted rate several times over to get loaded, importers admit they have limited leverage in the next round of annual service contract negotiations. There are fewer ocean carriers to choose from, and the mushrooming size of some of the top few carriers makes it impossible for some shippers not to work with them.

There used to be a general assumption that cargo owners would have to negotiate how much of the proposed peak season surcharge they would shell out, consultant Jon Monroe wrote in his weekly newsletter for forwarders. In such cases, a $ 600 surcharge could be negotiated down to $ 300 per container.

“ But that was then, and this is now, post COVID,” Monroe said.

Some importers hold out hope that power will swing back their way next year. Analysts anticipate tonnage overcapacity will start weighing down on the market in 2027, unless another major disruption creates market-moving changes. Ocean carrier executives aren’ t panicking, having seen the capacity tipping point postponed in recent years due to a variety of external shocks.

“ The industry will adapt relatively quickly,” via vessel scrapping and sailing slower, Mediterranean Shipping Co. CEO Søren Toft recently told Shipping Watch on the sidelines of a conference.

Importers should expect hefty drayage pricing increases during the traditional end-of-year contracting period. Reflecting higher fuel prices and tighter supply, rates were up 20.7 % year over year in October, according to the Drayrates- Journal of Commerce National Price Index.

Demand for drivers to handle increased intermodal volumes, and rebounding truckload and less-than-truckload rates, are pulling drivers away from ports, said Brian Kobza, chief commercial officer at IMC Logistics.

Higher diesel prices can force small owneroperators out of business, but a crackdown on non-domiciled truck drivers ultimately ended a three-year domestic freight recession.

“ It’ s a systematic change— spurred by regulation and fuel prices and ever-changing operating conditions,” Kobza said.

email: mark. szakonyi @ spglobal. com

4 Journal of Commerce | November 2, 2026 www. joc. com