[PLANiT's Transition Story] A New Barrier on the Sea Lanes, Built by US Politics

In 2025 the US erected a new barrier in shipping: Section 301 measures from the US Trade Representative (USTR). On the surface they target China, but Korean shipping is not in a safe zone either.

What It Charges

Chinese-owned or operated ships face a port fee rising from 50 dollars per net ton this year to 140 by 2028, while Chinese-built ships are charged 18 to 33 dollars per net ton or 120 to 250 dollars per container. Phase one starts on October 14. The crux is that the fee on Chinese-built ships applies regardless of flag, so a vessel owned by a Korean carrier is not exempt if it was built in China.

A Barrier Built by Politics

US-China hegemonic rivalry has spilled into the ports. The US ranks 19th in commercial shipbuilding and turns out fewer than five ships a year, while China builds more than 1,700, and Washington is using regulation to block that gap at the entrance to the sea trade routes. The charge turns on two questions. "Was it built in China?" breaks the flag-state principle and writes construction-stage supply-chain risk into regulation (China holds 53% of 2025 new orders and 59% of the backlog). "Is it operated by a Chinese carrier?" levies the same fee regardless of where the ship was built, and foreign carriers that share slots with them are not free of the cost either.

How the Industry Responds

Build location and route now convert into immediate cost at the turn of a political variable. Carriers must analyze fleet risk precisely by Chinese-built status and US call frequency, diversify orders toward Korean, US, Japanese, and European yards, write political-risk cost-sharing clauses into long freight contracts, cut Chinese dependence in core equipment like engines, and realign alliances that include Chinese carriers.

A New Political Economy at Sea

Shipping is no longer an industry of the open sea. Already weighed down by IMO environmental rules, the EU ETS, and the fuel transition, shipping now faces a structural crisis, not just higher costs, as US-China political risk piles on. The October 14 measure is too concrete to dismiss as a passing variable. Shipping now stands on the front line of geopolitical competition.

Impact On column "PLANiT's Transition Story" / Hyeryoun Chi, PLANiT