Ocean carriers operating on the eastbound trans-Pacific trade are preparing to cancel more sailings following a surge in booking cancellations last week. The uncertainty surrounding steep U.S. tariffs on Chinese goods is prompting shippers to pause or abandon freight plans, potentially leaving vessels departing China half-empty well into May.
Gene Seroka, Executive Director of the Port of Los Angeles, confirmed that 12 sailings from China to the U.S. West Coast scheduled for May have been scrapped. The cancellations stem from the Trump administration’s decision to impose 145% tariffs on a wide range of Chinese imports.
This brings the number of blank sailings in May above April’s total, which saw 11 canceled voyages to Los Angeles, according to data from logistics provider Spedag Americas. These included three weekly services by a smaller carrier operating vessels of roughly 2,000 TEUs.
Evergreen Marine, a member of the Ocean Alliance, is suspending its CPS service to Los Angeles after its final scheduled departure from Shanghai on Tuesday. No new sailings are expected until May 21, resulting in four consecutive weeks of blank sailings and an estimated 32,000 TEUs of lost capacity.
Evergreen declined to comment, but James Caradonna, EVP of Spedag Americas, emphasized the significance: “Four straight weeks of blanks is extreme. April’s blanks were sporadic—this is sustained.”
One senior executive at a trans-Pacific carrier reported a sharp 30% drop in bookings from China just last week. Customers are now asking to hold back containers at origin or even pull them from ports—an operational headache, especially at China’s high-traffic terminals.
With utilization rates plunging, the carrier expects more blank sailings ahead. “People are canceling and putting China cargo on hold,” the executive said. “We’re being forced to blank more sailings as vessel loads drop.”
While China-U.S. bookings stall, Southeast Asia is heating up. Carriers report ships on these routes running at 90–100% capacity as U.S. importers rush to move goods during a 90-day reprieve from reciprocal tariffs on countries other than China. Asia-Mediterranean lanes are also seeing strong demand, prompting vessels to be redeployed away from China.
“This uncertainty is accelerating alternative sourcing strategies,” the carrier executive added. “We’re reconsidering port calls and may remove some China stops from our network.”
Jason Cook, Managing Director at NVOCC Ardent Global Logistics, said bookings out of China have dropped 60% this week. Initially driven by small-volume shippers, the pullback is now spreading to larger, regular customers.
“Everything scheduled to leave China on April 9 was canceled,” Cook said, referencing the start date of China-specific tariffs—which remain in effect despite the broader 90-day pause.
Some of Cook’s clients are even trying to remove containers already at marine terminals or return them to factories—requests that manufacturers are refusing. “The lack of clarity is paralyzing,” Cook said. “Many customers are canceling all bookings, even after containers are gated in.”
Cook is seeing increased interest in U.S. bonded warehouses and foreign trade zones as stopgap solutions, while Southeast Asia and India emerge as alternative sourcing hubs. However, the limited supply of empty containers in those regions could create bottlenecks.
“When China slows down, Southeast Asia’s going to explode,” he warned. “But there’s not enough equipment or port calls—it’s a recipe for disruption.”
A New Jersey-based freight forwarder handling 40,000 containers annually said China-origin shipments have fallen about 20% in the past week, mainly among shippers moving around 2,000 containers per year. While most cancellations target May arrivals, the forwarder expects the impact to stretch into June if tariff policies remain unresolved. Some ocean carriers are now holding off on 2025 contract signings until May.
“This could easily get worse,” he said.
An executive at an alliance carrier confirmed some major shippers are still moving freight, but caution is rising. “Orders may get delayed or canceled without clarity on tariffs,” the executive said, adding that carriers are preparing for lower volumes in the months ahead.
Sanjay Tejwani, CEO of 365 Logistics, predicted even tougher choices ahead: “If tariffs stay in place through Q3, some importers may walk away from their shipments entirely. They simply won’t be able to afford the duties.”
Benton Kauffman, head of trans-Pacific logistics at DSV Global, said overall volumes on eastbound trans-Pacific routes are down about 20%, with China accounting for 60% of the decline.
“We may see Southeast Asia bounce back over the next two weeks,” Kauffman added.
A second carrier source noted that while many U.S. retailers have inventory to last through summer, decisions on future sourcing will hinge on how long the tariff standoff drags on.
Source: joc.com