No mention of U.S.-China ship taxes in trade truce

Trade truce buys time

Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said Sept. 23 that the U.S. and China agreed to extend the “Busan Agreement,” a trade truce that had been scheduled to expire Nov. 10, by two months to Jan. 10. The extension was announced as Chinese President Xi Jinping met in Washington with President Donald Trump.

The summit concluded Sept. 25 with limited public detail on the economic arrangements. USTR Jamieson Greer said that details of the limited trade agreements would be released today, while reports indicated the two countries had agreed to continue discussions on broader trade issues, including agricultural trade, non-tariff barriers and tariff relief for selected goods.

The truce announcement did not automatically amend the Section 301 notice, and no formal notice extending the fee pause had been issued as of Sept. 28.

Exposure extends beyond China lines

The prospective U.S. fees are important because they could affect a much wider set of operators than Chinese carriers such as Cosco Shipping (1919.HK) and OOCL (0316.HK).

The Section 301 action includes separate treatment for China-built vessels operated by carriers outside China. In the original fee schedule, covered Chinese vessel operators and Chinese-owned vessels faced a $50-per-net-ton fee, while non-Chinese operators using Chinese-built vessels would face the higher of $18 per net ton or $120 per discharged container. The action also provided for escalating fee levels in subsequent years.

The USTR action was structured to limit fees to one chargeable call per vessel per rotation and no more than five chargeable rotations per calendar year. It also contained exclusions and relief provisions, including for certain small vessels, vessels arriving empty, specified specialized trades, and certain owners that commit to acquiring U.S.-built tonnage.

If revived, the charges could prompt carriers to adjust vessel deployments, port rotations and network design to reduce exposure. Carriers could also seek to recover costs through surcharges or all-in freight rates, potentially widening the impact to U.S. importers and exporters.

Reciprocal stakes

China’s reciprocal “special port fees” on U.S.-linked vessels were suspended on a similar timetable, raising the prospect of a parallel return of Chinese charges if the U.S. measure is allowed to revive. Both governments paused the maritime measures in November 2025 as part of the broader trade stabilization effort.

The timing is especially awkward for shipping lines: The broader U.S.-China accord now runs beyond the maritime-fee deadline, but the fees themselves remain governed by a separate USTR administrative action. A new notice would be required to extend, revise or otherwise dispose of the Section 301 port-fee program.

More than 200 maritime and trade stakeholders had urged USTR to extend the suspension, arguing that a restart would inject costs and uncertainty into trans-Pacific networks.

Read more articles by Stuart Chirls here.

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