On February 21, 2025, the Office of the United States Trade Representative (USTR) issued a notice to invite public comments on potential trade actions aimed at eliminating China’s practices in the maritime, logistics, and shipbuilding sectors. USTR’s investigation found that China’s actions were unreasonable and burdensome to U.S. commerce.

USTR’s proposed actions include imposing fees and restrictions on international transport services related to ship operators and Chinese-built ships and promoting the transport of U.S. goods on U.S. vessels. USTR notes that “[f]or nearly three decades, China has targeted the maritime, logistics and shipbuilding sectors for dominance and has employed increasingly aggressive and specific targets in pursuing dominance. China has largely achieved its dominance goals, severely disadvantaging U.S. companies, workers, and the U.S. economy generally through lessened competition and commercial opportunities and through the creation of economic security risks from dependencies and vulnerabilities.”

Key features of USTR’s proposed service fees include:

• Imposition of a fee of up to $1 million per entry into a U.S. port of any China-operated vessel, or up to $1,000 per net ton of the vessel’s capacity;
• With respect to operators having prospective orders for vessels to be built at Chinese shipyards, fees ranging from $500,000 to $1 million per vessel entry into a U.S. port, depending on the percentage of prospective orders at Chinese shipyards; and
• Refunds of the above fees of up to $1 million per vessel entry into a U.S. port of a U.S.-built vessel through which the operator is providing international transport services.

USTR’s investigation began in 2024 after five labor unions filed a petition under Section 302 of the Trade Act of 1974, citing China’s targeting of these sectors for dominance. The government of China declined USTR’s request for consultation in connection with the investigation. In its published report, USTR found that U.S. commerce was burdened by China’s actions to displace foreign firms, lessen competition, create dependencies, and undermine supply chain resilience.

A public hearing will be held at the U.S. International Trade Commission in Washington, DC, on March 24, 2025. The deadline for comments is March 10. The deadline for requests to appear at the hearing is March 24.

USTR requests comments on the level of the burden or restriction on U.S. commerce from China’s targeted actions, the appropriate trade to be covered by responsive actions, and whether USTR’s proposed fees or restrictions on service are appropriate. Commenters are requested to address “[w]hether a proposed action would be practicable or effective to obtain the elimination of China’s acts, policies, and practices.”