On the Waterfront

If an American economic sneeze gives the world a cold, does a shutdown of America's West Coast ports mean Asia is about to come down with pneumonia? Thanks to an executive injunction by President George W. Bush ordering a temporary end to a 10-day U.S. dockworker lockout, the region avoided a trip to the emergency room. But it will take months before shipping traffic disrupted by the port shutdown returns to normal, and the economic threat will linger.

The labor dispute posed major problems for Asian companies. Exports to West Coast ports account for about 5% of Asia's...