Commodity vessels clog China ports as fee imposed on US ships

Waiting times for commodity vessels queued off China’s ports increased to the lengthiest this year, as geopolitical sparring between Beijing and Washington disrupts global trade.

It took an average of 2.66 days for a vessel to get into a berth after arrival in the week to Oct. 19, according to Bloomberg calculations based on data from ship-tracking platform Kpler on Tuesday. That’s an increase of 17% on-week, and the longest period this year, the calculations show.

China has introduced a hefty extra fee on vessels known to have American links, following a similar US move. The maritime friction forms one part of the nations’ broader trade dispute and has left the shipping industry scrambling to prepare documents or find workarounds.


Beijing’s new levies took effect last week, just days after they were first announced. Among them, the requirement that any vessel with at least 25% American ownership is subject to the duties means that any owner or operator — regardless of whether they’re based in the US — could be impacted. That short lead time has prompted shipping companies to review their ownership structures, prepare required documents, or swap out vessels.The disruption jolted shipping markets as charterers and shipowners rushed to settle trades and book compliant ships. Cost to book a very-large crude carriers on the benchmark Middle-East-to-China route was near $84,000 as of Tuesday, 48% higher than on the day before the announcement.

China is the world’s largest commodity importer, and vessel snarls — if prolonged — could ripple through the global supply chain, affecting liquid cargoes such as crude, as well as bulk carriers like iron ore.

An average of costs to book Capesizes on major routes remained elevated on Tuesday, despite a carve-out unveiled by Beijing at the last minute that spares most of these large bulk carriers. Some 88 Capesize carriers were waiting to discharge in China in the first two weeks of October, up from 55 at end-September, according to BRS Shipbrokers analysis of AXSMarine data.

However, “port congestion is still comfortably within historical norms,” said Wilson Wirawan, BRS’s head of dry bulk research.

In addition, Washington also imposed sanctions on a major oil-import terminal operator in China’s east, Rizhao. That move was the latest in a long line of moves aimed at frustrating shipments of crude oil from Iran to China.

Some oil hubs have seen wait times lengthen as tanker owners sought to comply with the new directives. Ships at Dongjiakou waited an average of 2.79 days last week, the second-highest period in Kpler figures as of Tuesday. Those at Yantai, meanwhile, idled for 2.7 days, up from about 1.8 the prior week.

“Shipowners are thinking they should hold on, and wait until they can enter the port,” said Matt Wright, freight analyst at Kpler. “There is still a great deal of uncertainty surrounding which owners face fees.”

Kpler figures can be subject to revision and updates as more information becomes available.