Shipping lines are reducing their use on Chinese-built vessels on Transpacific trades ahead of upcoming US Trade Representative (USTR) fees, but no such effect is yet seen on the Transatlantic.
In a recent issue of Sea-Intelligence Sunday Spotlight, Denmark-based research and analysis specialist Sea‑Intelligence looked at ship deployment data on the Transpacific and Transatlantic trades to see if carriers are reducing their use of Chinese‑built vessels ahead of new US Trade Representative (USTR) fees set to take effect on October 14, 2025.
The new regulations mean that Chinese-built vessels calling US ports will have to pay a fee. An exception is made for voyages shorter than 2,000nm and vessels smaller than 4,000 TEU.
According to Sea-Intelligence analysis, a shift is beginning to materialize on Transpacific, but no such effect is yet seen on the Transatlantic.
To measure any potential changes, the Sea-Intelligence team tracked the vessels deployed on two trades on a weekly basis throughout 2025 and mapped each vessel to its shipyard of origin.
“We calculated the share of Chinese-built vessels over a 3-week rolling average to reduce volatility, so we can identify any underlying trends as we approach the implementation date for the new fees,” said Alan Murphy, chief executive officer of Sea-Intelligence.
On the Transpacific, there are early signs of a reduction in the deployment of Chinese-built vessels. As shown in Figure 1, for the Asia-North America West Coast trade, the share of Chinese-built vessels has trended downwards from a level of 25-30% in the first half of 2025 to a range of 20-25% in recent weeks. A similar, though less pronounced, trend is visible on the Asia-North America East Coast trade.
In contrast, on the Transatlantic trade, there does not yet seem to be any such development. The data for liner services, from both North Europe and the Mediterranean to North America, does not currently support the notion that a widespread removal of Chinese-built vessels is underway on the Transatlantic.
“While individual vessel redeployments are occurring, they have not yet reached a level that creates a material statistical impact on this trade lane,” noted Alan Murphy.
