The US Trade Representative (USTR) has narrowed the scope of its tariffs against China\u2019s maritime industry to a fee based on the cargo capacity or container volume of Chinese-operated and -built ships entering US ports. The more targeted actions follow industry warnings that earlier proposals would increase costs for US shippers and pose an existential threat to smaller ports, but China-based ocean carriers could still face millions in fees under the tariffs.<\/p>\n
In its list of tariff actions that take effect Oct. 14, the USTR said Chinese ocean carriers will be subject to a fee of $50 per net ton of capacity upon arrival at a US port. The fee will go up to $80 after one year, rising each year before topping out at $140 in 2028.<\/p>\n
Net tonnage measures a ship\u2019s overall cargo capacity, regardless of vessel type. The fee will only be charged at the first port of call on a vessel string and will not stack on top of other port calls. The fee will only be charged five times per year on each vessel.<\/p>\n
Ocean carriers based outside of China operating Chinese-built ships will face a fee based on either net tonnage or container volume, whichever is higher. Ships built in other countries will not face the same fees, nor will fees be assessed based on the percentage of Chinese-built ships in a carrier\u2019s fleet or orders at Chinese shipyards.<\/p>\n
The tonnage fee for non-Chinese carriers starts at $18, escalating to $23 by April 2026 and topping out at $33 in 2028. The per-container fee starts at $120 and rises to $153 next year and $250 in 2028.<\/p>\n
Non-Chinese ocean carriers will be able to waive the fee if they take delivery of a US-built ship of at least the same size within three years. The fees will not apply to Chinese-built ships in US-flag fleets, container ships that are 4,000 TEUs or smaller, voyages of less than 2,000 nautical miles or Chinese-built ships owned by US-based carriers.<\/p>\n
The capacity-based tariffs come after a series of proposals that included fees of up to $1.5 million based on US port calls by Chinese carriers and similar fees on non-Chinese ocean carriers with Chinese-built ships in their fleets and orders at Chinese shipyards. Other proposals included an export cargo preference for US-built ships.<\/p>\n
After two days of hearings, the USTR said it wanted to reduce the potential impact on US shippers, particularly exporters and dry-bulk shippers.<\/p>\n
Still, the USTR plans tariffs based on the capacity of China-built ships and will still charge fees on that country\u2019s ocean carriers. The goal of the fees is \u201cto further disincentivize use of Chinese shipping services,\u201d the USTR said.<\/p>\n
Cosco, OOCL in crosshairs<\/p>\n
The USTR\u2019s fees will have the largest impact on ships operated by Cosco Shipping and its subsidiary Orient Overseas Container Line (OOCL).<\/p>\n
Source: JOC<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
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