HSBC Analysis: USTR Port Fees Could Heavily Impact Chinese Carrier Profits

OOCL container vessel

Chinese container lines are facing serious financial repercussions as new port fees from the United States Trade Representative (USTR) take effect on October 14, 2025. According to a new analysis by HSBC, these fees are projected to erode approximately 74% of the projected 2026 operating profit for China Shipping Holding (CSH) and 65% for Orient Overseas Container Line (OOCL).

The analysis forecasts that CSH could be liable for approximately $1.5 billion in annual port fees, representing 5.3% of its projected 2026 revenue against an expected EBIT margin of 7.1%. Meanwhile, OOIL faces an estimated $654 million in fees, equivalent to 7.1% of its projected 2026 revenue against an EBIT margin of 10.9%.

Although the final implementing rules have not yet been published, U.S. Customs & Border Protection is reportedly developing a system to collect these fees. Non-Chinese carriers will only face the fees if they deploy China-built vessels on their U.S. port calls.

The HSBC report noted: “The US Trade Representative's (USTR) port fees targeting Chinese carriers is scheduled to take effect from 14 Oct 2025. Further dilution or scrapping of the port fees would be a positive catalyst for Chinese carriers.”

Shipping Industry Begins Network Restructuring

Non-Chinese carriers have already begun restructuring their networks to mitigate the impact. Companies like Maersk and Hapag-Lloyd are deploying South Korea-built vessels on Transpacific routes. The Premier Alliance plans to split its Mediterranean Pacific South 2 service into separate services, allowing them to remove 10 China-built vessels from U.S. port calls.

Chinese carriers may pursue several mitigation strategies, including having their Ocean Alliance partners CMA CGM and Evergreen deploy more non-Chinese vessels on Transpacific routes, while CSH and OOCL add capacity elsewhere. They could also develop services that bypass U.S. ports by using transshipment via Canadian, Mexican, or Caribbean hubs.

The USTR's port fee structure, announced in April, establishes a fee of $50 per net ton for Chinese vessel owners and operators, escalating by $30 annually to reach $140 per net ton by 2028. Non-Chinese operators using China-built ships face a lower fee of $18 per net ton or $120 per discharged container, whichever is greater.

Industry analysts suggest that the repositioning of networks by carriers could temporarily tighten capacity and potentially delay the scrapping of older, non-China-built vessels, which currently account for 93% of container ships over 20 years old.

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Source: Phaata.com (According to HSBC / gCaptain)

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