US Eases Port Fees on China-Built Ships After Industry Backlash

Exemptions for Vessel Owners Servicing Great Lakes, Caribbean and US Territories

- 

LOS ANGELES - The Trump administration on April 17 shielded US domestic exporters and vessel owners servicing the Great Lakes, the Caribbean and US territories from port fees to be levied on China-built vessels, which are aimed at reviving US shipbuilding.

The US Federal Register notice posted by the US Trade Representative (USTR) was watered down from a February proposal for fees on China-built ships of up to US$1.5 million (S$1.97 million) per port call that sent a chill through the global shipping industry.

Ocean shipping transports about 80 per cent of global trade - from food and furniture to cement and coal. Industry executives feared virtually every cargo carrier could face steep, stacking fees that would make US export prices unattractive and foist annual import costs of US$30 billion on American consumers.

"Ships and shipping are vital to American economic security and the free flow of commerce," US Trade Representative Jamieson Greer said in a statement. "The Trump administration's actions will begin to reverse Chinese dominance, address threats to the US supply chain, and send a demand signal for US-built ships."

Still, the fees on Chinese-built ships add another irritant to swiftly rising trade tensions between the world's two largest economies as US President Donald Trump seeks to draw China into talks on his new tariffs of 145 per cent on many of its goods.