The Ripple Effects of the US/China Trade Embargo

April 29, 2025 — In an interview last week, Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent characterized the trade situation with China as “unsustainable,” pointing to possible relief through negotiations with Chinese officials. The current level of tariffs of 145% on Chinese goods and 125% on US goods going into China amounts to a trade embargo between the two countries. We are starting to see signs of weakness in US/China trade via shipping data that could eventually flow through to the US consumer if this trade embargo were to continue over the coming months.