Posted on January 20, 2025
China has rejected the findings of a US investigation into its shipbuilding industry and described the allegations that it levelled at China as an attempt to hinder the country’s development.
The Ministry of Commerce said in a statement posted online on Friday that China, which has been the world’s largest shipbuilder for more than a decade, “strongly opposes and is deeply dissatisfied with” the report released by the Office of the United States Trade Representative (USTR) on Thursday that said China’s dominance in the maritime, logistics and shipbuilding sectors was “actionable” under Section 301 of the US Trade Act of 1974.
Section 301 investigations aim to determine whether a foreign government’s policies or acts are discriminatory, and whether they burden or restrict US commerce.
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“The US 301 investigation is driven by domestic political purposes and the goal of curbing China’s development, posing a significant threat to the multilateral trade system and international trade rules,” the ministry said.
US Trade Representative Katherine Tai said Beijing’s targeted dominance in the three sectors was “the greatest barrier to revitalisation of US industries”.
“Today, the US ranks 19th in the world in commercial shipbuilding, and we build less than five ships each year, while the PRC (People’s Republic of China) is building more than 1,700 ships,” she said. “In 1975, the United States ranked No 1, and we were building more than 70 ships a year.”
China won 70 per cent of the world’s newbuilding orders last year, followed by South Korea with 17 per cent and Japan with 5 per cent, according to an annual report from shipping-data provider Clarksons Research.
The decline of the US shipbuilding industry was unrelated to China, the Ministry of Commerce said: “Even before the rise of China’s shipbuilding industry, the US held a minuscule share of the global market in shipbuilding.”
China urged America “to stop blaming China for US domestic industrial-development problems”.
The ministry also countered the US accusation that China’s shipbuilding success was built on the back of the “displacement of foreign firms and deprivation of market-oriented business”, saying that its shipbuilding sector relies on advantages in its industrial system, labour force and business environment, and has been open to the global market.
The 301 investigation results provided a basis for responsive action, which would be considered in the next stage, the USTR said in a report on its findings.
US labour unions that requested the 301 investigation had suggested imposing additional port fees on Chinese-built ships calling at US ports.
China will closely monitor the actions of the US and take necessary measures to defend its legitimate rights and interests, the Ministry of Commerce said.
The China Association of the National Shipbuilding Industry released a statement on Friday denouncing the US investigation findings as “incorrect and riddled with falsehoods”.
It attributed the Chinese shipbuilding sector’s prominent position to technological innovation, management reform, quality improvement and the hard work of all industry staff.
“The irresponsible and unprofessional misjudgments will significantly disrupt the global shipping system and international trade order, and severely impede the progress of the global maritime industry’s green transformation,” the association said.
