Sanctions worked! New Zealand has transferred the order to China, and South Korean shipyards are furious.

On October 14, New Zealand's Minister of Railways Winston Peters officially announced that the order to build two large ferries would be given to Guangzhou Shipbuilding International, a subsidiary of China State Shipbuilding Corporation. This decision replaced the previously canceled iReX project by Hyundai Mipo Dockyard in South Korea.

Peters openly praised Guangzhou Shipbuilding International's "professional capabilities, technical strength, and production scale," and directly stated that this move will save New Zealand taxpayers "hundreds of millions of New Zealand dollars." Upon hearing the news, Hyundai Mipo Dockyard was furious, but found itself helpless between two major powers.

On October 10, 2025, the Chinese government announced that it would impose a special port fee of 400 yuan per net ton on U.S. vessels. This measure is an equivalent countermeasure against the U.S. Office of the United States Trade Representative's initiation of a Section 301 investigation into China's maritime, logistics, and shipbuilding industries on April 17, 2025.

According to reports, the docking fee for a 5,000 TEU U.S.-flagged cargo ship increased from 150,000 to 600,000 U.S. dollars, which means a surge of 200 U.S. dollars per TEU. Korean companies that often build ships for the United States are now facing serious challenges. As of the end of the third quarter of 2025, the order volume of the three major South Korean shipbuilding companies - HD Hyundai Heavy Industries, Hanwha Ocean, and Samsung Heavy Industries - reached only 50% to 70% of their annual targets.

In the global shipping landscape, port strength is equally crucial. In August 2025, Shanghai Port's container throughput exceeded 5.02 million standard containers, setting a new monthly record. Other countries cannot afford to have their ships fined for coming to China, so choosing Chinese shipyards becomes understandable.

Original article: www.toutiao.com/article/1846196261278727/

Statement: The article represents the views of the author.