The number that produced the slowdown headlines was an export gain of roughly 24% year on year in July, down from about 27% in June. Customs also reported the trade surplus narrowing to $112.5 billion from $125.6 billion, with imports up 27.5% against a 36% jump the month before. Both prints came in ahead of what analysts expected. In almost any other year, a 24% export print would have been the story by itself rather than the evidence of decline.

The global EV story and the American EV story have decoupled. The IEA’s Global EV Outlook 2026 shows worldwide electric car sales climbing toward roughly a third of all new vehicle sales this year, while the US is described bluntly as falling behind the global boom. The US-specific shock. Last July’s One Big Beautiful Bill Act eliminated penalties for automakers missing fuel efficiency standards, removing a key incentive to sell EVs, and terminated federal tax credits for new and used EV purchases after September 2025.

China’s National Development and Reform Commission (NDRC) — the country’s powerful central economic planner — summoned executives from Maersk and Mediterranean Shipping Company (MSC) last month and delivered an unambiguous message: cease operating the Balboa and Cristóbal ports on the Panama Canal immediately. The Financial Times confirmed the directive on April 15, citing two people familiar with the talks. Neither shipping group, nor Beijing’s foreign ministry, had responded publicly by the time of publication.