China hits US ships with retaliatory port fees before trade talks
[October 11, 2025] By
CHAN HO-HIM
HONG KONG (AP) — China has hit U.S.-owned vessels docking in the country
with tit-for-tat port fees, in response to the American government’s
planned port fees on Chinese ships, expanding a string of retaliatory
measures before trade talks between U.S. President Donald Trump and
Chinese leader Xi Jinping.
Vessels owned or operated by American companies or individuals, and
ships built in the U.S. or flying the American flag, would be subjected
to a 400 yuan ($56) per net ton fee per voyage if they dock in China,
China’s Ministry of Transport said on Friday.
The fees would be applied on the same ship for a maximum of five voyages
each year, and would rise every year until 2028, when it would hike to
1,120 yuan ($157) per net ton, the ministry said. They would take effect
on Oct. 14, the same day when the United States is due to start imposing
port fees on Chinese vessels.
China’s Ministry of Transport said on Friday in a statement that its
special fees on American vessels are “countermeasures” in response to
“wrongful” U.S. practices, referring to the planned U.S. port fees on
Chinese vessels.
The ministry also slammed the United States' port fees as
“discriminatory” that would “severely damage the legitimate interests of
China’s shipping industry” and “seriously undermine” international
economic and trade order.
China has announced a string of trade measures and restrictions before
an expected meeting between Trump and Xi on the sidelines of the
Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation forum in South Korea that begins at
the end of October. On Thursday, Beijing unveiled new curbs on exports
of rare earths and related technologies, as well as new restrictions on
the export of some lithium battery and related production equipment.
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An aerial view of a container port is seen in Qingdao in east
China's Shandong province, on June 6, 2024. (Chinatopix via AP,
File)
 The port fees announced by Beijing
on Friday mirrors many aspects of the U.S. port fees on Chinese
ships docking in American ports. Under Washington's plans,
Chinese-owned or -operated ships will be charged $50 per net ton for
each voyage to the U.S., which would then rise by $30 per net ton
each year until 2028. Each vessel would be charged no more than five
times per year.
China’s new port fee is “not just a symbolic move,” said Kun Cao,
deputy chief executive at consulting firm Reddal. “It explicitly
targets any ship with meaningful U.S. links — ownership, operation,
flag, or build — and scales steeply with ship size.”
The “real bite is on U.S.-owned and operated vessels,” he said,
adding that North America accounts for roughly 5% of the world fleet
by beneficial ownership, which is still a meaningful figure although
not as huge as compared to Greek, Chinese and Japanese ship owners.
However, the United States has only about 0.1% of global commercial
shipbuilding market share in recent years and built fewer than 10
commercial ships last year, Reddal added.
While shipping analysts have said that the U.S. port fees on Chinese
vessels would likely have limited impact on trade and freight rates
as some shipping companies have been redeploying their fleets to
avoid the extra charge, shipping data provider Alphaliner warned
last month in a report that the U.S. port fees could still cost up
to $3.2 billion next year for the world’s top 10 carriers.
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