The surge in imports has led to the first contraction of the US economy since 2022.

On April 30, Jin10 reported that the U.S. economy contracted for the first time since 2022 in the first quarter, due to a significant surge in imports before tariffs were imposed and weakened consumer spending. This is the first glimpse of the ripple effects of Trump's trade policies. According to preliminary data released by the U.S. government on Wednesday, the annualized quarterly real GDP for the first quarter shrank by 0.3%, far below the average growth rate of about 3% over the past two years. The report from the U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis shows that net exports dragged down GDP by nearly 5 percentage points. Consumer spending, which accounts for two-thirds of the economy, grew by 1.8%, marking the weakest performance since mid-2023. Business equipment spending was a highlight of the report, growing at an annual rate of 22.5%.