SAVANNAH, Ga. — It’s been just over two months since President Donald Trump announced a sweeping — and frequently evolving — tariff plan that rattled stock markets and put businesses on notice.

With a deeply interconnected economy and a busy international port system along its coast, Georgia has had a front row seat to all the developments. 

The ships that pass through the ports in Savannah and Brunswick carry goods Georgians use every day.

“We are the number three container port in the United States,” said Michael Toma, an economist at Georgia Southern University. “We are playing in the big leagues.”

Georgia’s major ports in Savannah and Brunswick are a critical gateway to the international economy. According to Georgia Ports Authority data, just last year more than 5 million containers moved through the Port of Savannah.

It’s a financial engine generating billions in economic impact for the state.

But all that international trade makes Georgia’s ports highly sensitive to international tariffs that function as a tax importers have to pay on goods they bring into the country.

Trump’s April 2 announcement of a raft of increased tariffs rippled across the coastal industries around the ports.

“It is a source of worry,” said Thomas Morrison. “It is a source of unease.”

Morrison is a manager at the coastal Georgia branch of TCW, a logistics company that specializes in trucking. The bulk of their cargo moves through the international economy.

“Between 90 to 95 percent and that might be on the low end,” Morrison estimated.

He worries elevated tariffs could trigger a decrease in international shipments and a decline in his business that depends on that cargo.

The White House’s repeated changes to the tariff regime, he added, make planning for the future a challenge.

While Trump announced the tariffs on April 2, by April 9, much of the plan was paused—except for tariffs on China which were increased. On May 12, tariffs on China were reduced by more than half. Last week, two federal courts issued contradicting rulings on the legality of the tariff plan—one struck them down, another allowed them to continue for now. The issue is likely to be ultimately decided by the U.S. Supreme Court.

“It’s hard to keep up,” said Morrison.

But others view the tariffs as a lifeline.

John Wallace has worked in Georgia’s shrimp industry for decades. When asked how the industry has evolved, he answered: “slowly dying.”

According to him, overseas competitors using cheap labor have been undercutting domestic shrimpers for years, driving them out of business.

“I worry about the future,” said Wallace. “I can count on one hand the number of people less than 40 years old that are in the industry.”

While not a cure-all (he also urged government leaders to ramp up enforcement of regulations already on the books), Wallace views increased tariffs as a tool that could help level the playing field for Georgia’s shrimpers.

“We can compete with a fair market,” he said.

The shrimpers and the truckers represent a snapshot of just a few of the industries impacted by these sweeping tariffs.

Georgia’s ports are feeling the impact.

In April, following President Trump’s 90-day pause on some of his steepest tariffs, Georgia’s ports saw traffic rise. The Georgia Ports Authority reported a 17 percent year-over-year increase in container trade through the Port of Savannah that month.

“Effectively your importers, people who were dependent on an overseas supply chain, were rushing to get as much of their product into the U.S. before the tariffs were levied on it,” said Toma.

But he warned that effort to frontload demand will not last forever and a drop in trade—even if temporary—may be on the way.

The Georgia Ports Authority’s top leader recently echoed that sentiment, telling a local Savannah news outlet the trend won’t continue forever. According to WJCL, Georgia Ports Authority President & CEO Griff Lynch said he expects trade through the ports to decrease in June before bouncing back in July.

But the situation continues to evolve as the White House negotiates trade deals with other countries around the world.

According to Toma, what that will mean for trade through Georgia’s ports and the prices Georgians see when they go to the store is still an open question.

While some companies like Walmart have recently announced they’ll be raising prices on some goods as a result of tariffs, others have not yet detailed their plans.

“The effect on the average Georgia consumer remains somewhat unclear,” he said. “Unfortunately we just don’t quite know yet.”