Ships divert, directors resign as US-China port fees rock shipping industry
Global carriers scramble to adapt as new US and Chinese duties take effect – and first vessel reportedly hit with 4.5 million yuan charge
Shipping companies are rushing to divert vessels and adjust their corporate structures, as they strive to minimise their exposure to steep new US and Chinese port fees that took effect on Tuesday.
Hapag-Lloyd’s container ship Potomac Express skipped its scheduled call at Ningbo in eastern China and instead proceeded to Busan, South Korea. Cargo destined for or transiting through Ningbo would be discharged in Busan and then delivered to its final destination via Maersk’s network, Maersk said on Tuesday.
Maersk will make similar arrangements for its vessel Maersk Kinloss, which will also no longer call at Ningbo and head directly to South Korea, where any Ningbo-bound cargo will be unloaded and transported onwards via the company’s established network.
The company added that it would “be making changes” to its TP7 rotation – a transpacific shipping service operating between ports in Asia and North America, on which the two container ships sail – to ensure that customers’ supply chains continue running “as smoothly as possible”.
Export shipments originally scheduled to be carried from or via Ningbo to the United States on the two vessels would be transferred to other ships for transshipment in South Korea, Maersk said.
Potomac Express and Maersk Kinloss were likely diverted because they were both built in South Korea – rather than China – meaning they could not be exempted from China’s port fee.
However, companies were not able to divert all their vessels quickly enough to avoid the new duty, which Beijing announced on Friday and took effect on Tuesday.
The US-flagged container ship Manukai, operated by US company Matson, appears to have become the first victim of the port fee battle, Chinese media outlet Caixin reported on Tuesday.