LISTEN: Crucial Victory | U.S. Exempts Caribbean from Proposed Tariffs on Chinese-Built Ships

In a significant development for Antigua and Barbuda and the Caribbean maritime industry, the United States has announced an exemption of the Caribbean region from a set of proposed tariffs targeting Chinese-built vessels.

This decision, unveiled on Thursday, comes as a relief to regional shipping lines and exporters who were facing potential multi-million-dollar fines under the Section 301 case launched in 2023.

The proposed tariffs included fines of up to $1.5 million for every Chinese-built ship entering U.S. ports and penalties ranging from $500,000 to $1 million for vessels built or operated outside the U.S.

These tariffs posed a serious threat to a region where over half of the shipping fleets rely on Chinese-built vessels.

Darwin Telemaque, CEO of the Antigua & Barbuda Port Authority, tells Antigua.news that the exemption is a crucial victory for our region.

“The Caribbean region and U.S. territories within the Caribbean have been spared from these fees, which is vital for maintaining our trade and economic stability”, he says.

The Caribbean’s economy is predominantly reliant on maritime trade, making this decision particularly impactful.

Major regional shipping lines, including Tropical Shipping, Seaboard Marine, CMA CGM, and King Ocean, would have struggled under the weight of these financial burdens, especially given the limited capacity of the vessels primarily affected.

While the U.S. Trade Representative has yet to finalize the structure and value of the tariffs—set to take effect later this year—it has been confirmed that they will not be applied on a per-unit basis. A final determination regarding the fee structure is expected in May.