COMMENT Time for stability
December 2025
or so, we have lived through unprecedented disruption – from the financial crash fallout to Covid, and from supply chain challenges to rampant inflation. As the old adage says, what doesn’t kill you makes you stronger; and I’m proud to say that our industry has emerged from each of these trialling times leaner, fitter and more agile. But it becomes very difficult for port and terminal operators to justify additional investment in the face of deep economic uncertainty. The US tariff situation is as far from stable as you can get, with the picture changing almost weekly. Japan is a great
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example, with Trump imposing tariffs in April of 25% on most goods. For cars and automotive parts, they jumped from 2.5% to 27.5% on cars and automotive parts, then dropped to 15% in October. These are huge swings and make forecasting extremely challenging.
Understandably, this trade war and the subsequent renegotiations is impacting the Asia-Pacific region, most notably China.
You can find out more about how the region is responding in our special report, featuring an exclusive interview with Chinese OEM, XMCG. Conversely, these trade issues do not seem to be dampening enthusiasm for ports and terminal material handling equipment in North America. The International Workboat Show is once again a sellout. And while its primary focus is on boat building, there are plenty of exhibitors there from the cranes and forklift sectors, as well as other ancillary services and solutions. As always, we bring you the best of the bunch in our show preview. So, while we are long overdue a period of stability, in the meantime business goes on. We must continue to navigate these choppy waters while keeping our fingers crossed for calmer seas ahead.
Phoebe Galbraith, editor
ll industries naturally evolve to support their markets. Innovation typically comes through either changes in regulation that require new products and services, or through changing customer needs. However, the paradox is that industry requires relative stability to deliver those innovations. For the past 15 years
Dockside Lift & Move Supplement | December 2025 | iii
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