Pending the entry into force of the new measures by the US Trade Representative (USTR), aimed at overturning Chinese maritime dominance and reviving the American shipbuilding industry, Alphaliner focuses on their impact on the top liner companies.
Starting October 14, vessels under Chinese ownership /or management and Chinese-built vessels will face enormous fees during their approaches to US ports. Specifically, a fixed fee of $80 per net ton will be imposed on vessels under Chinese ownership /or management on each voyage destined for the US. Concurrently, Chinese-built vessels will be charged either $23 per net ton or $/TEU. In both cases, the fees will be imposed on a vessel no more than five times per year.
According to the above data, and under the assumption that existing services will not change, Alphaliner estimates that the top liner companies will pay total fees of $3.2 billion in 2026.
Specifically, Cosco is clearly the most “threatened” company, as it will be required to pay fees of $1.53 billion next year. They are followed by ZIM, ONE and CMA CGM, which will be subject to fees of $510 million, $363 million and $335 million respectively, primarily due to the fact that they manage vessels owned by Chinese shipowners. At the same time, CMA CGM, MSC and Yang Ming will be charged additional fees of $50 million, $73 million and $48 million respectively, as they manage a fairly large number of Chinese-built vessels.
Finally, the members of the Gemini Cooperation alliance face different situations. Maersk will be charged “only” $17.5 million, while Hapag-Lloyd will be charged approximately $105 million in 2026.
