A new battlefield between the U.S. and China: Imposed Port Fees

New port fees imposed by the U.S. and China

Ocean shipping has become an important battlefield in the trade war between the world's two largest economies (the United States and China). The United States and China have begun imposing additional port fees on shipping companies involved in the transportation of commodities and crude oil since October 14, 2025. The United States aims to weaken China's dominance in the global maritime sector and strengthen its own shipbuilding industry. China has stated that the special fees it has imposed are intended to protect its shipping industry from "discriminatory" measures.

The new port fees imposed by the U.S. and China are as shown  below.

Ocean transport serves as an indispensable part of the supply chain and is a critical pillar of global trade. Globally, 80% of goods are transported over oceans. According to the USTR, ships move 61% of U.S. international trade with Asia, and 45% of U.S. trade with Europe. 90% of China's import and export via ocean shipping. The new port fees imposed by the U.S. and China has triggered a chain reaction in the global shipping market. An analyst from Fearnley Securities noted, "The impact is already significant. Given the substantial sums involved, this could result in a loss of market efficiency and will likely lead to higher freight rates." At the same time, trans-Pacific shipping capacity is contracting sharply.

The impact of the new U.S.  port fees on China-linked vessels

Based on Alphaliner's projections, under a 2026 baseline scenario of the new U.S.  port fees on China-linked vessels, these fees could generate an annual financial impact of approximately US$3.2 billion on the global leading shipping companies in 2026.

-      COSCO Group remains clearly the most threatened by the fee as its fleet would be subject to $1.53bn.

-      The fleets of ZIM, ONE, and CMA CGM servicing the US would respectively be subject to $510m, $363m, and $335m in fees, because the operators deploy a large share of ships chartered from Chinese shipowners.

-      The French carrier, MSC, and Yang Ming operate a substantial fleet of Chinese-built ships, which would incur an additional $50m, $73m, and $48m in fees in 2026.

-      The two partners of the Gemini Cooperation project, Maersk and Hapag-Lloyd fleet, would be charged $17.5m and $105m respectively in 2026, due to the amount of their Chinese-owned units.  (Gemini Cooperation is a global shipping cooperation project jointly launched by Maersk and Hapag-Lloyd on February 10, 2025. Its aim is to focus on optimizing key shipping routes such as those from the Far East to Northwest Europe and from Asia to North America.)

（Source: Alphaliner）

The impact of  Chinas’ special port fees on the U.S.-linked vessels

Despite fewer than 1% of U.S.-flagged vessels docking in China annually, this has little real impact. It is particularly noteworthy that the 25% ownership threshold has been established. US-based investors such as Citibank, JP Morgan, Oaktree Capital, BlackRock hold significant stakes in various major shipowners and charterers through both direct equity investments and via bonds issued by these companies. It is known through TradeWinds that there are 22 companies in major global shipowners and charterers have US-based shareholder holding ownership stakes exceeding 25%. The involved sectors include tankers, dry bulk carriers, LPG/LNG carriers, mining giants, and container shipping. Tankers are impacted most significantly (representing 15% of global tanker capacity), while dry bulk carriers (4%), container ships (7%), and LPG/LNG carriers (17%) also face capacity adjustment pressures.

On October 14, 2025, the first date of the special port fee implementation, the five Chinese ports (Ningbo-Zhoushan Port, Tangshan Port, Qingdao Port, Shanghai Port, and Guangzhou Port) simultaneously began collecting special port fees on U.S.-linked vessels. A total of 17 vessels were intercepted on the first day, five vessels are forced to divert due to refusal to pay. According to the China Maritime Safety Administration showed that China conducted 412 vessel ownership verifications, with the average net tonnage of vessels triggering the fees reaching 82,000 tons.

As part of related measures, China has also imposed sanctions on five U.S.-affiliated subsidiaries of South Korean shipbuilding conglomerate Hanwha Ocean, stating these subsidiaries "assisted and supported" the U.S. investigation into China's trade practices. As one of the world's largest shipbuilding enterprises, this move is viewed as an extension of China's countermeasures against the U.S. "reciprocal port fee policy." Hanwha Company stated that they would assess the impact and engage in communication with China.

Gaps with the Shipbuilding Industries between the U.S. and China

There are 180 large shipyards worldwide capable of building large oceangoing vessels, with 78% of them located in China. China dominates new shipbuilding orders in traditional vessel markets (90% for container ships, 81% for dry bulk carriers, and 72% for tankers), and Chinese companies also hold half of all new liquefied gas carrier orders. Currently, China's share exceeds 65% across all vessel types, far surpassing the combined 31% share of its main competitors, South Korea and Japan.

According to the U.S. Navy’s data, China has 232 times America’s shipbuilding capacity. In 2024, China built over 1,000 commercial vessels, while the U.S. produced just eight. China also manufactures 80% of ship-to-shore cranes and 96% of shipping containers used in the U.S., while domestic production of both sits at zero.

Will the port fees be burdened by downstream importers and consumers?

What the importers and consumers are most concerned about is the port fees would be passed on to importers and consumers? So far, Maersk, CMA CGM, MSC, and COSCO have stated that they will not pass these port fees on to their customers. However, given the substantial amount involved and the fact that the fees will increase annually until 2028, it remains uncertain how long these shipping companies can sustain their current pricing.

Maersk: By adjusting shipping routes, it will avoid US routes and deploy China-built vessels to other regions.

CMA CGM: Although this new US regulation will add operational complexity, the company stated that its current service fee structure remains robust and it has no plans to raise prices. Meanwhile, CMA CGM has begun developing new strategies to mitigate potential cost pressures.

MSC: MSC is actively adjusting the global deployment of its fleet and is even prepared to absorb some of the resulting costs internally. A significant portion of MSC's fleet is built in South Korea, with China-built vessels accounting for a quarter of the total. Additionally, 106 new ships are currently under construction at Chinese shipyards.

COSCO: It will maintain its existing capacity layout and sustain market competitiveness through cost-effective products.

Political tensions, shifting trading patterns and reconfigured shipping lanes are reshaping the geography of maritime trade. Apart from the port fees, what is more worrying is that with China announcing a significant expansion of export controls on rare earths and U.S. President Donald Trump threatening to slap 100% tariffs on Chinese goods, a blow for blow trade war is looming.