The United States and China have agreed to temporarily suspend the reciprocal imposition of port fees on each other’s vessels, one of the outcomes of this week’s “Trump-Xi Summit” in South Korea, seen as a signal of easing tension in the trade relations between the world’s two largest economies.
This one-year postponement was reached after a meeting between U.S. President Donald Trump and Chinese Communist Party leader Xi Jinping in South Korea. U.S. Trade Representative Jamieson Greer announced this suspension measure to the media aboard Air Force One.
The U.S. initially announced the imposition of these punitive fees in April. The Trump administration stated that this move aimed to revitalize the American shipbuilding industry. A prior investigation conducted under Section 301 of the U.S. Trade Act concluded that China had achieved dominance in the global maritime sector through unfair trade practices.
Based on this investigation, the U.S. announced the imposition of port fees on vessels with a “Chinese nexus” (including those built, owned, operated, or flagged in China). This action would add approximately $3.2 billion in costs annually for international shipping companies.
In response to the U.S. action, Beijing promptly levied a “special port service fee” of 400 RMB per net ton on U.S. ships docking at Chinese ports.
Both the U.S. and China have agreed that this suspension measure will last for one year, covering fees that took effect on October 14, 2025.
For global shipping and logistics companies, the suspension of these measures removes short-term uncertainty and avoids additional port costs that could affect trans-Pacific shipping rates and vessel deployment strategies.
High-Trend International Group (HTCO), a maritime services provider, stated in a release that this suspension has brought immediate and substantial benefits to the company.
“This development is expected to significantly reduce cross-border transportation costs, enhance cash flow stability, and bolster investor confidence in HTCO’s growth strategy,” the company said.
However, with the legal mechanism of the Section 301 investigation still in place, these port fees could be reinstated at any time if negotiations stall.
Some industry executives express concerns over the ongoing uncertainty. Simon Heaney, a senior manager at maritime research consultancy Drewry, posted on LinkedIn, stating, “I sincerely hope that this agreement can have some sort of permanence – a key element that has been severely lacking so far – to allow the shipping industry to return to its core purpose: facilitating global commerce.”
Nonetheless, this uncertainty may help advance U.S. strategic goals. Despite the suspension of port fees enforcement, the U.S. will continue its established strategy to revitalize the shipbuilding industry.
Trump has announced that the Hanwha conglomerate of South Korea will build a nuclear submarine at a shipyard in Philadelphia. Meanwhile, South Korea has committed $150 billion to drive the “Make American Shipbuilding Great Again” (MASGA) investment project to rebuild America’s shipbuilding capacity.
Responding to questions from reporters aboard Air Force One, Greer stated, “We are trying to rebuild the shipbuilding industry; South Korea has just agreed to invest $150 billion in the shipbuilding sector, so we see promising prospects.”
U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent also noted that the threat posed by the Section 301 action alone was sufficient to reduce demand for Chinese shipbuilding, pointing out “substantial shrinkage or decline in orders at Chinese shipyards.”