US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent confirmed the two countries had agreed to extend the so-called Busan Agreement by two months, pushing back the scheduled reinstatement of reciprocal port charges. The announcement came ahead of Chinese President Xi Jinping’s meeting with President Donald Trump in Washington on September 24, with Bessent disclosing the extension after meeting Chinese Vice Premier He Lifeng and stating that Washington was pursuing a broader economic and trade agreement with Beijing rather than a series of smaller arrangements. The Busan arrangements had suspended reciprocal port charges introduced by both countries amid a wider dispute over maritime, logistics and shipbuilding practices.
The US had introduced port service fees on April 17, 2025 under Section 301 of the Trade Act of 1974, citing alleged unfair Chinese practices in the maritime, logistics and shipbuilding sectors, while China responded with its own “special port fees” on vessels with a US nexus starting October 10, 2025. The reciprocal suspension originally took effect on November 10, 2025 for one year, and under the latest agreement the expected reinstatement has now been deferred until January 10, 2027, though formal implementation details have yet to be published. Industry groups including the International Chamber of Shipping and the World Shipping Council had lobbied for the extension, warning in a joint letter to the US Trade Representative that costs from resumed fees would ripple across shipping networks and affect vessel deployment decisions given that Chinese-built vessels represent a significant share of global ocean carrier capacity.
Source: SAFETY4SEA — https://safety4sea.com/us-china-extend-port-fee-suspension-to-january-2027/
Tags: US-China Trade, Port Fees, Section 301, Busan Agreement
