Trump wants to punish Chinese ship operators to help stimulate the creation of the U.S. shipbuilding industry. In the proposal, each time a ship operated or built by China enters a U.S. port, the charge is at least $1 million each time.
Peter Sand, chief analyst at Oslo freight analysis platform XENETA, said that as Chinese ships feature in current fleets and order books, the largest shipping lines will quickly increase costs from potential port fees unless they take extraordinary measures. “We hope this will be implemented with some adjustments. But we will get a fee at some point,” he said. “The networks facing shipping companies may be subject to significant adjustments, and that certainly comes at a cost.”
Chinese operators are at the worst position, with almost all ships being made in the motherland. Nevertheless, the world’s two largest transport routes, MSC Mediterranean Transport and AP Moller-Maersk A/S- are also facing challenges.
According to Alphaliner, about a quarter of their fleets are currently built by China, but their order books are tilting heavily towards shipyards in Asian countries. Data shows that more than 90% of MSC’s current orders are placed by Chinese companies, while more than 70% of Musk’s new ships will be built there. Bloomberg
