In the US Congress, President Donald Trump has announced the establishment of a new “Office of Shipbuilding” in the White House. Tax incentives are also planned.
The US administration has been ranting about China’s “outsized influence” on global shipbuilding, important transport routes such as the Panama Canal and ports ever since Trump was inaugurated as the 47th President of the USA. By contrast, China’s own domestic shipbuilding industry has long ceased to play a major role. Trump wants to change that.
The Republican announced the establishment of a new authority in the US Congress and wants to revive the country’s maritime sector with tax incentives. According to the Wall Street Journal, the Trump administration is preparing a regulation comprising a total of 18 measures.
These include the previously announced levies on ships built in China when they call at US ports or on cranes and container gantry cranes manufactured in China. These revenues are to be used for investments in the domestic shipbuilding industry, it is said. Shipyard workers should receive higher wages and government procurement processes, including the US Navy, should be reviewed.
Matthew Paxton, President of the Shipbuilders Council of America, applauded: “Since the founding days of our nation, the U.S. shipbuilding industry has played a central role in national and homeland security. We stand ready to design and build America’s commercial and military fleets.”
