Terms of Trade
The Ports Are Weather Vanes as Economic Clouds Darken
A dock worker in Australia in 2019.
Photographer: Ian Waldie/BloombergThis article is for subscribers only.
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Longshoremen hold a revered place in economic and political history — from the docks of London and South Africa to Southern California. They’re on the front line when waves of trouble arrive, whether from trade disputes, recessions in far-away places or natural disasters that disrupt global commerce.