From The Washington Post:
The gray waters around the port of Yantian are ominously empty. It’s supposed to be peak season here, a time when the docks are filled with exporters shoveling holiday goods onto freighters bound for the United States faster than the ships are able to receive them.
Instead, irritated truck drivers, logistics coordinators and other workers stand idle, smoking and complaining that business is so slow that their income has dropped by two-thirds, because of the deteriorating U.S. economy, with which this region is so closely linked.
The community that once bragged about its close ties to the United States now rues them.
Li Hongguo, 36, who was ferrying a load of handbags from a factory to the port, said that last year he made one or two runs a day. These days he’s lucky to get one job every three to four days.
“America is the boss of the world, so if it does badly, it affects everyone else,” Li said.
