The United States plans to charge docking fees at US ports to any ship that is part of a fleet that includes Chinese-made or Chinese-flagged vessels, and will encourage allies to do the same or face retaliation, a draft order says. US President Donald Trump's administration is drafting an order to revive domestic shipbuilding and weaken China's influence over the global shipping industry. Addressing China's growing dominance at sea and the decline in US naval readiness is a rare area of consensus between Republican and Democratic lawmakers. According to the Center for Strategic and International Studies, Chinese shipbuilders account for more than 50 percent of all merchant ship tonnage produced worldwide each year, up from just 5 percent in 1999. That growth has come at the expense of shipbuilders in Japan and South Korea. U.S. shipbuilding peaked in the 1970s and now accounts for a tiny fraction of the industry’s output. The draft order, dated Feb. 27 and seen by Reuters on Thursday, proposes to levy a fee on any ship that enters a U.S. port “regardless of where it was built or flagged, if the ship is part of a fleet that includes ships built or flagged in the PRC (People’s Republic of China).” The U.S. administration and Chinese officials could not be reached for comment. The document is based on The move follows proposals by the U.S. Trade Representative’s office last month to levy fees of up to $1.5 million on Chinese-built ships calling at U.S. ports following an investigation into China’s growing dominance in the global shipbuilding, maritime and logistics sectors. The key difference is that the draft executive order does not include USTR’s language that says port fees on the fleet would be imposed if Chinese-built ships account for 25% or more of the ships in service, scheduled for delivery or on order. It also did not specify the dollar value of those fees or say how they would be calculated. Cargo ships loaded with shipping containers are seen at the Port of Oakland as trade tensions escalate over U.S. tariffs. The plan could impose significant costs on major container carriers including China’s COSCO, Switzerland’s MSC, Denmark’s Maersk and Taiwan’s Evergreen Marine, as well as on operators of vessels carrying food, fuel and cars. Earlier this week, MSC CEO Soren Toft said the world’s largest container carrier could call fewer U.S. ports to limit the impact of the new fees. The draft executive order also calls on U.S. officials to engage allies and partners to take similar measures or risk retaliation.
The draft order also would impose tariffs on Chinese cargo-handling equipment.
“The national security and economic prosperity of the United States are at risk due to the People’s Republic of China’s unfair trade practices in the maritime, logistics and shipbuilding sectors,” the draft order says.
Reuters reported on Wednesday that the plan would impose tariffs on imports arriving on Chinese-made ships, according to a draft executive order information sheet with 18 points.
French carrier CMA CGM said on Thursday it would expand its U.S.-flagged American President Lines fleet to 30 over the next four years from 10 now.
CMA CGM is the world’s third-largest container shipping company and is part of an alliance with ship-sharing companies including COSCO. It counts global retailer Walmart as a major client and said last week that proposed U.S. port charges on Chinese-built ships would affect all shipping companies.