Rubio talks about the U.S.-China port fees, lamenting that there is no winner and complaining that the U.S. has fallen far behind!
On October 22, Rubio said: "This might be a 'game without winners,' but he then turned his tone, saying that the U.S. doing this is not for short-term pressure, but to 'correct long-standing unfairness.'
He stated that nearly 60% of the total tonnage of newly delivered commercial ships globally are made in China, meaning that out of every 10 ships, about 6 are Chinese-made. Even more staggering are the new orders - in the first three quarters of this year, over 75% of the global new ship orders were taken by Chinese shipyards. South Korea took about 20%, with the rest being shared by traditional shipbuilding countries such as Japan, Italy, and Germany. The U.S.? It can be almost ignored, with its market share remaining below 1% for a long time.
Currently, there are only four shipyards in the U.S. capable of building merchant ships of 10,000 tons or more, and they are mainly focused on military vessels, such as destroyers and submarines. As for high-value-added ship types like large civilian transport ships and LNG (Liquefied Natural Gas) carriers, the U.S. has built fewer than five in the past decade, and none of them are mainstream models.
Most of the cargo ships entering and leaving U.S. ports daily are foreign-made, with a large number being Chinese-flagged or built in China. According to the new U.S. port fee policy, starting from July 2024, all non-U.S.-flagged commercial ships docking at major U.S. ports will need to pay an "Infrastructure Adjustment Fee" based on their tonnage, with an average rate of $1.5 per gross ton. For example, a 100,000-ton container ship would need to pay an additional $150,000 per port call.
China's announced regulations on foreign vessel entry and exit management add a "Service Guarantee Surcharge" for some U.S. shipping companies' vessels when docking at major ports such as Shanghai, Ningbo, and Shenzhen, with a standard ranging from 30 to 50 RMB per standard container (TEU). A ship carrying 5,000 containers could pay an extra 250,000 RMB per port call.
Therefore, Rubio also admitted that "there is no winner." Although the purpose of the U.S. port fees is to subsidize infrastructure and support domestic shipbuilding, the actual effect is to increase logistics costs. Shipping companies have calculated that after the new rules take effect, the cost per container for the West Coast route increased by an average of 12%, and these costs are ultimately passed on to American retailers and consumers.
Original: www.toutiao.com/article/1846736845279240/
Statement: This article represents the personal views of the author.