The Northwest Seaport Alliance (NWSA), encompassing Seattle and Tacoma, reported a continuation of the "up and down trend" in its weekly volumes for the last week of July, with international imports seeing a rise while truck transactions and vessel lifts remained below historical averages. The report, issued by Kate Nolan, Manager of Communication & Outreach for the NWSA, also highlighted significant concerns over new tariffs set to be imposed on India.

Volume Trends and Metrics: The week ending August 1 saw a notable increase in some key metrics compared to the previous week, but overall figures remained down when compared to 2024 averages:

• International imports rose 25% from the week before, bringing in 12,695 containers. However, this figure was still down 9.4% compared to the July 2024 weekly average and 6.6% compared to the 2024 weekly average. It was also slightly under the 2025 Year-to-Date (YTD) average, down by 1.3%.

• Truck transactions (containers moving in/out of terminals via truck) were down 5.9% week-over-week, totaling 22,792 transactions. This figure was 7.0% lower than the July 2024 weekly average and 5.3% below the 2025 YTD average.

• Vessel lifts (containers on/off a vessel, including empty moves) showed a substantial 41.1% increase from the week before, reaching 27,009 lifts. Despite this week-over-week rise, vessel lifts were still 12.4% below the July 2024 weekly average and slightly down by 0.4% from the 2025 YTD average.

• Vessel calls varied, with 13 voyages recorded for the week ending July 25, 11 for August 1, 17 for August 8, and 10 for August 15, all noting some voids or delayed arrivals.

Tariffs on India Raise Significant Concerns: The NWSA is closely monitoring the announcement of additional tariffs on India, which will raise the rate to 50% starting August 27th. This development is a major concern for the Seaport Alliance, as India is a critical trading partner:

• India ranks as the 9th largest trading partner by container volume and 10th largest by vessel value for the NWSA.

• Top import commodities from India include 'other textiles', 'stone, plaster & cement', 'other machinery', shellfish, and furniture.

• Key exports to India are apples, legumes, scrap metal, and paper & paper board.

The report highlights the potential devastating impact of these new tariffs by drawing a parallel to past trade disputes:

• Washington state is the leading apple producer in the U.S., and apples are the state's top commodity by dollar value. In 2024, India was the second-largest destination for apples moving through NWSA terminals.

• India is also the top destination for pulses (a subset of legumes) via the NWSA gateway. Washington state is the third-largest producer of lentils.

• A retaliatory tariff imposed by India in 2019 on U.S. apples and pulses serves as a stark warning. This previous tariff decimated the India apple market through the NWSA gateway, with volumes plummeting from 11,000 TEUs (twenty-foot equivalent units) in 2018 to just 363 TEUs in 2022. Although volumes rebounded in June 2023 after the tariffs were lifted, they remained 70% below pre-tariff levels, with 3,479 TEUs moved in 2024.

• The NWSA emphasizes that once market share is lost to new suppliers during tariff periods, it is "very difficult to regain". This historical precedent underscores the potential for severe long-term negative impacts on local agricultural markets due to the new tariffs.

The full report is available on the NWSA website, along with vessel schedules and a four-week look ahead