The U.S. and China agreed to a 12-month suspension of tit-for-tat port fees targeting each other’s vessels.
The fees were introduced to penalize vessels built, owned or operated by entities linked to the other country — intended to reshape global ship-building and maritime logistics.
The port-fees scheme was a major pillar of the Trump administration’s strategy to revive U.S. ship-building by penalising Chinese-built ships and redirecting demand to U.S. yards.
Carriers were already re-routing or avoiding Chinese-built ships to dodge the fees — creating disruptions in global shipping networks and rising freight costs.