May 8 (Reuters) – U.S. container imports dropped 5.5% in April as importers contend with trade policy uncertainty ‌and geopolitical risks, supply chain technology provider Descartes ‌Systems Group said on Friday.

Containerized import volumes have been hit by U.S. ​President Donald Trump’s shifting trade policies and Iran’s closure of the Strait of Hormuz — a vital shipping corridor for energy supplies — following U.S.-Israeli strikes on the country.

Import trends are ‌seen as a ⁠measure of the health of the U.S. economy — rising when the economy is strong and ⁠falling when the economy is weak.

U.S. seaports handled 2,277,965 twenty-foot equivalent units last month, which were down 3.2% from March ​levels, data ​from Descartes showed. This ​marked the first sequential drop ‌in volumes for the month of April since 2022.

Still, last month’s container import volumes were about 19% higher than pre-pandemic levels from April 2019, which the firm said is a reflection of “continued resilience in underlying demand.”

So far ‌in 2026, however, U.S. containerized imports ​are down 5%.

Meanwhile, China-origin containerized imports ​dropped 15.3% year-on-year ​to 680,778 TEUs in April 2026.

Importers are likely ‌to get a “a short-term cash ​flow boost” ​as the U.S. Customs and Border Protection agency issues the first tariff refunds from May 12, Descartes said, ​but warned that ‌policy uncertainty and cost pressures would persist as “replacement ​tariffs remain in effect.”

(Reporting by Nandan Mandayam in ​Bengaluru; Editing by Sahal Muhammed)