US unveils new port fees for Chinese-linked ships

The United States unveiled new port fees on Chinese built and operated ships Thursday, in a bid to boost the domestic shipbuilding industry and curb China's dominance in the sector. "Ships and shipping are vital to American economic security and the free flow of commerce," U.S. Trade Representative Jamieson Greer said in a statement announcing the new fees, which will largely take effect in several months and apply to each ship's U.S. visit -- not at each port as some in the sector had worried.