China says new US port fees would be 'detrimental to all parties'

China on Friday said that the new port fees imposed by the US on Chinese-built and operated ships would be “detrimental to all parties” after Washington announced the new rules to boost the domestic shipbuilding industry.

“They drive up global shipping costs (and) disrupt the stability of global production and supply chains,” foreign ministry spokesman Lin Jian said, adding: “They will not succeed in revitalising the US shipbuilding industry.”

While announcing the new fees, US Trade Representative Jamieson Greer said, “Ships and shipping are vital to American economic security and the free flow of commerce. The Trump administration’s actions will begin to reverse Chinese dominance, address threats to the US supply chain, and send a demand signal for US-built ships,” adding that the rules will come into effect in mid-October.

What are the new rules?

Under the new cargo ship rules, Chinese ships will be required to pay a fee per tonnage or container. The fee will be applied only to Chinese-linked ships’ US voyage, and not at each port as some in the industry had worried.

The fee will be assessed up to five times per year and can be waived if the owner places an order for a US-built vessel.

Meanwhile, there will be separate charges for Chinese-operated ships and Chinese-built ships that will gradually increase over the years. For Chinese-built ships, the fee starts at $18 per net ton (NT) or $120 per container, meaning a ship with 15,000 containers could incur a fee of $1.8 million.

In addition to the fees, Greer also announced proposed tariffs on some ship-to-shore cranes and Chinese cargo handling equipment.

Trump’s trade war with China triggers meme fest

While China’s leaders use their economic and political might to fight Donald Trump’s trade war “to the end”, its army of social media soldiers are embarking on a more humorous campaign online.

China’s online warriors have been taking advantage of the massive strides in artificial intelligence to create memes highlighting that many of the goods bought by Americans such as shoes and smartphones are made using cheap Chinese labour.

Defiant posts have shot to the top of most-searched lists on social media, flooding platforms with patronising comments and jokes.

In one video, a Chinese internet user opens his hands to reveal what goods he buys from the United States – nothing.

With inputs from AFP