The Port of Los Angeles reported its lowest monthly cargo output in more than two years in May, citing a shipping slowdown caused by tariffs.

In a June 13 briefing, Port of Los Angeles executive director Gene Seroka said that the port processed roughly 716,000 twenty-foot equivalent units in May, down 5% from that same month last year. And although May is typically a stronger month for cargo, leading into the summer's peak shipping season, imports still fell 19% from April, as well as 9% year-over-year. Seroka also warned that unless the Trump administration reaches long-term trade agreements to minimize the strain from tariffs, "we'll likely see higher prices and less selection during the year-end holiday season."

“The uncertainty created by fast-changing tariff policies has caused hardships for consumers, businesses and labor," he said.

During the briefing, Yale Budget Lab director Ernie Tedeschi shared data that showed how U.S. tariffs to date could end up increasing consumer prices by 1.5% by the end of the year, and lead to a loss in purchasing power of nearly $2,500 per household annually. Tedeschi also estimates that tariffs could end up shaving 0.5% off of the country's GDP growth in 2025, while leading to 376,000 fewer jobs and 0.3% rise in unemployment.

"I think that's a floor, not a midpoint or a ceiling," he added. "In addition to the direct effects from tariffs, there are uncertainty effects — consumers and businesses who don't know what tariff policy will be are sitting on their hands, and not making all the long-run purchasing investment and hiring decisions they would otherwise make."

Certain sectors that rely more on imported goods could be subject to double-digit price increases as well, Tedeschi said, ranging from as much as 17% for leather products to 15% for apparel, all of which would have an outsize impact on lower-income and working-class families. Overall, the average effective tariff rate for the U.S. in 2025 is the highest the country has seen since the Great Depression.