Global merchandise trade rose faster than expected at the start of the year, the World Trade Organization said in a quarterly update released Tuesday. The volume of goods traded worldwide grew 3.6% from the previous quarter and 5.3% from a year earlier, outpacing the WTO’s April projections. The surge was driven largely by companies in North America rushing to import goods ahead of the United States’ steep tariff increases that began in early April. Import volumes in North America jumped 13.4% on the quarter and 19% from a year earlier, with U.S. customs data showing a 25% year-on-year rise in the first quarter before growth slowed to 1% in April-May. The purchasing spree helped lift worldwide exports of office and telecommunications equipment by 16% and chemicals by 12%, while automotive products, fuels and mining goods fell about 4%. Despite the strong start, WTO economists now expect merchandise trade to be almost flat for 2025, forecasting growth of just 0.1% as higher duties and swollen inventories curb demand. The outlook is sharply weaker than the Secretariat’s baseline expectation of 2.7% issued in April and only a shade better than its stress-case projection of a 0.2% decline. The agency warned that the escalating tariff war led by Washington is likely to further strain supply chains and weigh on global demand in the coming quarters.