US port fees on China built vessels would hit grain exporters
Maritime historian, professor, and YouTuber, Sal Mercogliano, who rose to mainstream fame with appearances on the CNN network a year ago on the Dali incident provided comments with a deep historical context.
He pointed to decisions in the time following World War 2 (late 1940s through the late 1970s), where: “…the United States allowed its merchant marine to remain stable, while global ocean trade grew exponentially.”
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The House of Representatives is discussing a move that would effectively amount to an act of war if carried out: a naval blockade on China.
House Republicans Propose The Study Of An Oil Naval Blockade Of China
The following is outdated, especially considering the problems with the US Navy’s LCS ships, but I thought that the bold quote was interesting. I highly doubt that Russia would ever submit to the US!
Related:
[2013] Stranglehold: The Context, Conduct and Consequences of an American Naval Blockade of China
In short, Russia would not only be China’s best hope of overcoming an American blockade, but it would also be the United States’ key to closing China’s transit route through Central Asia and preventing China’s two neighboring oil producers from supplying it with petroleum. In an American blockade of China, Russia’s importance as a swing state cannot be overstated, as is borne out by the observation that “no blockade of China in history has succeeded without Russian acquiescence.”
For a variety of reasons, the US is already one of the worst places in the world to build infrastructure. And now, president Joe Biden’s plan to “buy American” for future government infrastructure projects will likely make things even worse.
Biden’s “Buy American” plan could kill US jobs
White House Rethinks China Tariffs Amid Taiwan Turmoil
By Zerohedge.com
The Trump tariffs are the subject of a lawsuit filed by scores of U.S. companies who’ve asserted the levies are overly broad and were improperly implemented. If the Biden administration can’t defend the Trump tariff regime, it could be compelled to evaluate tens of thousands of public comments about it, or reimburse the plaintiffs for tariffs they’ve paid so far.
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Biden’s interest in pandering to labor unions also figures in his slow-walking his tariff-relief decision. Milton Friedman had something to say about that
“The benefits of a tariff are visible. Union workers can see they are ‘protected.’ The harm which a tariff does is invisible. It’s spread widely.”
What labor unions?!
Union Representation Petitions Continue to Increase in FY 2022 Under Biden Administration
According to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, in 2021 the percentage of U.S workers, including public- and private-sector workers, who were members of unions was 10.3 percent—a half point decline from the 10.8 percent unionization rate in 2020. Within the private sector, the unionization rate declined by 0.2 percent in 2021 to 6.1 percent. The degree to which union activity in 2022 with an aggressively labor-friendly NLRB general counsel and a majority Biden appointed Labor Board moves the needle for union membership is yet to be determined.
Moscow’s New Found Independence
Hudson noted, however, that “the biggest beneficiary” of Russia having been laden with sanctions is Washington. This is because Europe, which is heavily reliant on Russian energy, is faced with simultaneous energy and food crises, thus leaving it with little ability to pay attention to other matters.
“Basically, Washington doesn’t care if Russia wins the war [in Ukraine], because the US has succeeded in eliminating its competition in Europe, especially Germany.”
Related:
The agency added that the European Union’s commitment to reduce member states’ gas consumption by 15 percent from August 2022 to March 2023 will continue to increase oil demand by about 300,000 barrels per day for the next six quarters.
The Aframax vessels are optimally-sized to dock at European docks, which often cannot fit supertankers, an analyst from E.A. Gibson Shipbrokers told Bloomberg, and the current sky-high rates should remain heightened in the months ahead so long as sanctions against Russia remain.
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“The market consensus was too pessimistic about Russia’s capability to re-route volumes to other buyers,” IEA analysts said. “Russia’s exports adjusted towards other buyers without a serious disruption to its production.”
The Ocean Shipping Reform Act allows for more enforcement of rising fees. But shippers say the law isn’t a “silver bullet.”
President Joe Biden signed the Ocean Shipping Reform Act of 2022 into law on Thursday, promising sweeping changes to the ocean shipping industry after more than two years of port congestion, delays and rising costs.
Biden just signed a law to lower shipping costs. Will it work?
Short-staffed and underfunded.
The president warned carriers that new regulations could be coming as he called on Congress to pass the Ocean Shipping Reform Act of 2022.
‘The rip-off is over’: Biden urges shipping reform during Port of Los Angeles visit
Ms. Cat’s Chronicles 