TariffSignals
Latest published period
Tariff Exposure Intelligence

Where the tariff-sensitive cargo actually flows.

Census-based import exposure by port, HS category, origin country, state, and industry. Built for operators who need to know which products, lanes, and trading partners may be affected by tariff actions — and where to focus broker, procurement, and routing checks next.

Source: US Census Bureau — International Trade API (imports/hs · imports/porths · imports/statehs · imports/naics)
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Important — Read first

This is freight and trade-flow intelligence, not customs, legal, tax, tariff classification, or brokerage advice. Census trade data shows exposure, not tariff rates. Verify tariff treatment, HTS classification, duty exposure, and customs decisions with a licensed customs broker, qualified trade counsel, CBP, and primary source records. TariffSignals combines official trade flows with tariff/legal monitoring to identify which products, countries, ports, states, and industries are most exposed — but you must verify before acting.

Operator brief

What changed. Who is exposed. What to check next.

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Census trade-flow data shows exposure, not tariff rates. TariffSignals combines official trade flows with tariff and legal monitoring to identify which products, countries, ports, states, and industries are most exposed to active and pending tariff actions.

Top exposed port (sample preview)
Major U.S. ports for tariff-sensitive HS categories include Los Angeles, Long Beach, New York/Newark, Houston, Savannah, and Norfolk. Live ranking updates with each Census publication.
Top exposed HS category (sample preview)
Passenger motor vehicles (HS 8703), lithium-ion batteries (HS 8507), semiconductors (HS 8542), solar (HS 8541), steel (HS 7208), and aluminum (HS 7601) typically carry the largest tariff-sensitive monthly import flows.
Concentrated origin (sample preview)
Trade-flow concentration in tracked HS categories typically centers on Japan, South Korea, Germany, China, Vietnam, Mexico, and Canada — the trading partners most exposed to Section 232, 301, AD/CVD, and USMCA actions.

Top exposed ports

Ports ranked by recent US import value for tracked tariff-sensitive HS categories.
Sample preview — latest published periodLive ranking populates after the next Census release.
Los Angeles, CAPassenger motor vehicles (HS 8703)
Long Beach, CALithium-ion batteries (HS 8507)
New York / Newark, NYSemiconductors (HS 8542)
Census trade-flow data · imports/porths · Latest published period

Top exposed HS categories

HS commodity categories on the curated tariff-sensitive watchlist, ranked by US import value.
Sample preview — latest published periodLive ranking populates after the next Census release.
Passenger motor vehiclesHS 8703 · Section 232
PharmaceuticalsHS 3004 · Monitoring
Electronic integrated circuitsHS 8542 · Section 301
Census trade-flow data · imports/hs · Latest published period

Origin-country concentration

Where US imports of tracked categories originate. High concentration = high exposure to country-specific tariff actions.
Sample preview — latest published periodLive ranking populates after the next Census release.
JapanHigh concentration in vehicles, semis, batteries
South KoreaBatteries, semis, appliances
GermanyVehicles, pharma, industrial machinery
Census trade-flow data · imports/hs (CTY_CODE) · Latest published period

State-of-destination impact

Destination states for tracked import categories. Shows which state-level supply chains carry the most tariff-sensitive inbound volume.
Sample preview — latest published periodLive ranking populates after the next Census release.
CaliforniaLargest gateway state for tariff-sensitive imports
MichiganAuto sector concentration
TexasGulf ports, energy, electronics
Census trade-flow data · imports/statehs · Latest published period

Port × commodity matrix

Highest-value combinations of port and HS category — the routing concentrations most exposed if a specific tariff action hits a specific product flow.
Sample preview — latest published periodLive matrix populates after the next Census release.
Long Beach → Lithium-ion batteriesHS 8507
Los Angeles → Passenger vehiclesHS 8703
Savannah → ApparelHS 6109
Census trade-flow data · imports/porths · Latest published period

Watchlist changes

Largest month-over-month swings across tracked ports, HS categories, countries, and states. Big moves can precede or follow tariff actions.
Sample preview — latest published periodLive month-over-month deltas populate after the next Census release.
Watch: tariff-sensitive cargo flowsLargest swings appear when a new regime action lands.
Census trade-flow data · derived from prior-month delta · Latest published period
How TariffSignals builds the exposure view

Source flow, refresh cadence, and output shape.

Refresh cadenceCensus publishes monthly U.S. International Trade data on roughly a six-week lag. TariffSignals refreshes exposure tables on the fifth day of each month — fresh data within hours of release. The "period" label on every card shows the reference month, not the publish date.
Source flowCensus International Trade API (imports/hs, imports/porths, imports/statehs, imports/naics) → per-HS pull for every watchlist code → normalization → upsert into exposure tables. Aggregate rows (OECD, NATO, regional groupings) are filtered out; only individual country rows survive.
Output shapeSix cards: top exposed ports, top exposed HS categories, origin-country concentration, state-of-destination impact, port × commodity matrix, and watchlist month-over-month changes. Each row carries dollar value, prior-month value, and percent change. Per-HS news strip pairs trade flows with current news.
What you can do with itSize which import flows a tariff action would actually hit. Identify origin concentration risk before a country-specific action. Spot routing shifts (e.g., goods reclassifying through a different port). Generate client briefs that combine regime monitoring with dollar-level exposure context.
Methodology

How the exposure layer works.

What you seeUS import value (general imports, monthly) for a curated watchlist of tariff-sensitive HS categories, broken down by HS code, country of origin, US port, US destination state, and NAICS industry.
Why this matters for tariffsTariffs are levied on HS-coded imports from specific countries through specific ports of entry. The bigger the flow, the bigger the tariff-rate impact. Exposure ≠ tariff rate, but it tells you where a tariff action would land hardest.
Refresh cadenceCensus publishes monthly with a ~6-week lag. TariffSignals refreshes after each release. The "period" label on every card shows the reference month, not the publish date.
What this is notNot a tariff rate database. Not customs advice. Not duty calculation. Not classification opinion. Pair this exposure view with the main TariffSignals dashboard (regime monitoring) and a licensed customs broker for transaction decisions.
WatchlistSteel (HS 7208) · Aluminum (HS 7601) · Passenger motor vehicles (HS 8703) · Lithium-ion batteries (HS 8507) · Semiconductors (HS 8542) · Solar / PV (HS 8541) · Softwood lumber (HS 4407) · Apparel (HS 6109) · Pharmaceuticals (HS 3004) · Household appliances (HS 8450). Tied to active Section 232, 301, 201, AD/CVD, and USMCA activity.
Source citationUS Census Bureau, International Trade API: data.census.gov/data/timeseries/intltrade/imports/{hs|porths|statehs|naics}. Variables: GEN_VAL_MO, CTY_CODE, CTY_NAME, PORT, DISTRICT, STATE, NAICS, I_COMMODITY.