Trade rebounds sharply at Georgia’s ports after tariff-related disruption
August was third-strongest month on record for container traffic at Savannah. But autos, break-bulk cargo business fell at Brunswick.
Tugboats have been busy once again at the Garden City Terminal, as container traffic was the third-highest on record in August at the Port of Savannah. (Courtesy of Georgia Ports Authority)
SAVANNAH ― The tariff drag on Georgia’s ports was fleeting.
Container traffic through the Port of Savannah returned at near-record volumes in August, topping 500,000 units for the fourth time in the last six months. August was the third-best month in the port’s history as trade bounced back from a “freight air pocket” tied to President Donald Trump’s “Liberation Day” tariff announcements earlier this year.
Those tariff threats led to a temporary period of canceled ship sailings from the Georgia Ports Authority’s biggest trade partner, China. Traffic slumped in June to its worst point in two years and was off marginally in July before the August surge.
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Georgia Ports Authority President and CEO Griff Lynch — pictured speaking to the Atlanta Rotary Club on Monday, Sept. 15, 2025 — predicted earlier this year that Savannah and other big ports would fare well once the trade disruption ended. (Adam Beam/AJC)
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