Port of Los Angeles says shipping volume will plummet 35% next week • Hacker News Board

Re: Port of Los Angeles says shipping volume will plummet 35% next week

#81

Post by 9rx » Wed, Apr 30, 2025, 2:32 PM UTC

doctorwho42 wrote: post #68

perihelions wrote: post #41

Earlier quoted context omitted.

But, China itself is automating away most of those jobs. It's a stark difference between Chinese and Western—just look at the phraseology we're using, without thinking about it: "out of jobs"; in China's zeitgeist they wouldn't say they lost jobs to technology, they say they "saved 80 percent of manpower" [0]. [0] https://www.globaltimes.cn/page/202312/1304443.shtml ( "China’s first self-built fully automated dock en…

Because their centralized government seems to have a purpose other than gaining power and wealth.

Even where power and wealth is the sole purpose, "saving labor" to allow them to move into new jobs with higher meaning to your power/wealth would be your default take. "Job loss" is the position only when you've stopped innovating and can't imagine that there is anything else people can do.

Re: Port of Los Angeles says shipping volume will plummet 35% next week

#82

Post by vjvjvjvjghv » Wed, Apr 30, 2025, 2:32 PM UTC

duxup wrote: post #2

It will be interesting to see if retailers choose raising prices or if they lean more towards ... just not offering some things.

I think it will be both. Raising prices for some goods because of tariffs (and adding some percent for good measure and profit) while also discontinuing others. It may go like the car market where cheaper options are slowly being phased out and the focus goes to higher priced vehicles.

Re: Port of Los Angeles says shipping volume will plummet 35% next week

#83

Post by ajmurmann » Wed, Apr 30, 2025, 2:32 PM UTC

bjourne wrote: post #32

Loughla wrote: post #24

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I had a conversation with someone who I usually respect, and would say is an intelligent person. He's a trump supporter for the manufacturing support. He said, "It's just not that hard to get these factories back to the states. We can get that done this month." The amount of cognitive dissonance and just outright believing the lies is astounding. Trump won't say that states need to build those factories. He'll tell g…

He's not wrong. It is technically possible. However, transforming the US into a command economy may not be the best thing to do.

We can build a factory in a month, including permitting, acquiring the land, planning the building and constucting it, as well as procuring or building the machinery and setting it up in the factory, programming it and hiring and training the workforce during high employment? That's very impressive!

Re: Port of Los Angeles says shipping volume will plummet 35% next week

#84

Post by dylan604 » Wed, Apr 30, 2025, 2:33 PM UTC

Aurornis wrote: post #60

rad_gruchalski wrote: post #38

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Well… it’s the best time to start? I guess that’s what the MAGA Sun is hoping for.

It’s actually not. If you’re starting a business right now with the goal of selling to customers all over the world, setting up shop in America is not looking good. You’d pay exorbitant tariffs on inputs and machines. It’s better to manufacture out of the country and let US consumers eat the tariff cost on import while keeping your operations efficient outside of the US tariff zone. It’s an extraordinarily poorly pla…

That's not what MAGA world wants though. They want products made here, sold here, bought here. MAGA world does not care about the rest of what the world's people do. If they want to buy our stuff, great, but then blame other governments for taxing American products like there's no blame to share.

Re: Port of Los Angeles says shipping volume will plummet 35% next week

#85

Post by ceejayoz » Wed, Apr 30, 2025, 2:33 PM UTC

rdtsc wrote: post #79

ceejayoz wrote: post #28

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Yes, probably. Lose skilled, trained workers to another industry and it may be tough to get them back later on when you need them again.

> Yes, probably. Lose skilled, trained workers to another industry and it may be tough to get them back later on when you need them again. I love it! If that's the case, then it's easily solved, just ship empty cardboard boxes back and forth to/from Hawaii. The workers can diligently load and unload them, and then load them right back. The truck drivers can do a few loops around Los Angeles even to keep up their trai…

Or… undo the change that caused a temporary shock.

By all means, retrain the blacksmiths in the early 1900s… but this isn't that sort of situation. We'll need the port workers again.

Re: Port of Los Angeles says shipping volume will plummet 35% next week

#86

Post by Anon84 » Wed, Apr 30, 2025, 2:33 PM UTC

pkulak wrote: post #61

taylodl wrote: post #7

This could get really ugly when the shelves start going empty. This may make the toilet paper incident seem quaint in comparison.

Trump will back down and lift the teriffs the second there are widespread consequences. He’ll give some excuse, and his supporters will eat it up. That or he’ll make so many deals with CEOs for political support and financial contributions that we won’t even notice that a few smaller companies went out of business or pulled out of the US.

It may not matter. The ships that were supposed to be here, aren't. Even if the tariffs were lifted today, it would still take weeks for new orders to be shipped and delivered to the US. We're very much in the FO part of FAFO

Re: Port of Los Angeles says shipping volume will plummet 35% next week

#87

Post by reaperducer » Wed, Apr 30, 2025, 2:34 PM UTC

taylodl wrote: post #7

This could get really ugly when the shelves start going empty. This may make the toilet paper incident seem quaint in comparison.

This could get really ugly when the shelves start going empty.

Retailers Fear Toy Shortages at Christmas as Tariffs Freeze Supply Chain: https://www.nytimes.com/2025/04/29/business/trump-tariffs-ch...

In a Toy Association survey of 410 toy manufacturers with annual sales of less than $100 million, more than 60 percent said they had canceled orders, and around 50 percent said they would go out of business within weeks or months if the tariffs remained. … She had placed a large order of scooters to arrive for the summer. But the importer rerouted the shipment to Canada because it did not want to pay the tariff.

Re: Port of Los Angeles says shipping volume will plummet 35% next week

#88

Post by rad_gruchalski » Wed, Apr 30, 2025, 2:34 PM UTC

Aurornis wrote: post #60

rad_gruchalski wrote: post #38

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Well… it’s the best time to start? I guess that’s what the MAGA Sun is hoping for.

It’s actually not. If you’re starting a business right now with the goal of selling to customers all over the world, setting up shop in America is not looking good. You’d pay exorbitant tariffs on inputs and machines. It’s better to manufacture out of the country and let US consumers eat the tariff cost on import while keeping your operations efficient outside of the US tariff zone. It’s an extraordinarily poorly pla…

Well… what can I tell you. Talk to your president regarding dismantling your country? It’s not difficult to figure out that I‘m being sarcastic.

What I‘m saying is: the problem sits in the white house.

Re: Port of Los Angeles says shipping volume will plummet 35% next week

#89

Post by jmyeet » Wed, Apr 30, 2025, 2:35 PM UTC

duxup wrote: post #2

It will be interesting to see if retailers choose raising prices or if they lean more towards ... just not offering some things.

For many goods a 145% tariff is a ban for all intents and purposes and no different to a 100% tariff or a 200% tariff. This is just more evidence (as if we needed it) that the administration has no idea what they're doing.

Certain goods are extremely high mark up. For example, clothing is typically 100-200% markup. So if you buy a $5 t-shirt and sell it for $15, the tariffed price is now ~$12. You may find retailers will sell that at $20, absorbing some of the cost on a temporary basis.

Also, many such retailers have already sought to diversify their supply chains (eg buying clothing from Vietnam and other places).

Re: Port of Los Angeles says shipping volume will plummet 35% next week

#90

Post by philipallstar » Wed, Apr 30, 2025, 2:35 PM UTC

doctorwho42 wrote: post #68

perihelions wrote: post #41

Earlier quoted context omitted.

But, China itself is automating away most of those jobs. It's a stark difference between Chinese and Western—just look at the phraseology we're using, without thinking about it: "out of jobs"; in China's zeitgeist they wouldn't say they lost jobs to technology, they say they "saved 80 percent of manpower" [0]. [0] https://www.globaltimes.cn/page/202312/1304443.shtml ( "China’s first self-built fully automated dock en…

Because their centralized government seems to have a purpose other than gaining power and wealth.

It's just people commentating differently depending on what "team" they think the target of the comment is on - people who think socialism is probably a good idea, but bemoan any automation done by private industry that causes job losses. However they will love China's efficiency doing the same thing.