美国对中国制造的集装箱起重机征收关税将扭曲港口之间的竞争

US container ports with outstanding orders for Chinese-made ship-to-shore cranes are facing a cumulative additional bill of $131m, due to a recent government decision to apply a 25% tariff on the products.美国港口因最近政府决定对中国制造的岸桥征收 25%的关税，面临着总计 1.31 亿美元的额外费用。

In a submission to the Office of the US Trade Representative (USTR), the American Association of Port Authorities (AAPA) claimed some 35 cranes were under construction in China that would be delivered to US ports after the tariff implementation date of 1 August.在向美国贸易代表办公室（USTR）提交的一份申请中，美国港口协会（AAPA）声称中国正在建造 35 台起重机，将在 8 月 1 日关税实施日期后交付给美国港口。

“Assuming an average of $15m per crane (AAPA’s understanding from our membership), the new tariff would mean an additional $131.25m in unexpected costs, before factoring in planned purchases over the next five or 10 years,” says the submission.“根据我们会员的了解，每台起重机平均价格为 1500 万美元，新的关税将意味着额外的 1.3125 亿美元的意外成本，还未考虑未来五到十年计划购买的费用，”提交的报告说道。

By way of example, it cited the east coast port of Virginia, which ordered 12 STS cranes in China, worth $161.52m, an order signed before the tariff announcement.举例来说，它引用了弗吉尼亚州东海岸港口在中国订购的 12 台 STS 起重机，价值 1.6152 亿美元，这是在关税公告之前签署的订单。

AAPA said: “Should the tariffs come into effect, the port would be responsible for an additional $40.38m cost.”AAPA 表示：“如果关税生效，港口将承担额外的 4038 万美元费用。”

And New Orleans, which is developing its Louisiana International Terminal in conjunction with MSC, expects to order an initial 10 units which it believes will now cost an extra $52m.新奥尔良正在与 MSC 合作开发其路易斯安那国际码头，并计划订购最初的 10 个装置，预计现在将额外增加 5200 万美元的成本。

AAPA added that a recent survey of its members suggested at least another 61 cranes were expected to be ordered in the next five years to cater for expansion plans, and the tariffs could distort competition.AAPA 补充说，最近对其会员进行的一项调查显示，预计在未来五年内至少还会有 61 台起重机被订购，以满足扩张计划，而关税可能会扭曲竞争。

It said: “For the many ports considering crane purchases but have not yet signed contracts, they now have new information they can factor into procurement decisions, allowing them to source STS cranes from other suppliers, shift funding from other projects, or delay acquisition.据称：“对于许多正在考虑购买起重机但尚未签订合同的港口来说，现在他们有了新的信息可以考虑采购决策，允许他们从其他供应商采购 STS 起重机，将资金从其他项目转移，或延迟收购。”

“The ports that have already signed contracts are forced to simply absorb millions of dollars in new costs, which may require them to reduce the scope of other projects, take on debt, or delay necessary infrastructure upgrades.”“已经签订合同的港口被迫承担数百万美元的新成本，这可能需要它们减少其他项目的规模，负债或推迟必要的基础设施升级。”

It called on the USTR to take two actions to prevent these problems.它呼吁美国贸易代表办公室采取两项行动来防止这些问题。

“First, USTR should delay the effective date for the STS crane tariffs by at least two years, or ideally until there is a US manufacturer capable of providing the product domestically. This would serve the dual purpose of providing relief to ports that have already signed contracts and incentivising domestic production.首先，美国贸易代表办公室应该将 STS 起重机关税的生效日期延迟至少两年，或者最好是在美国有能力提供国内产品的制造商出现之前。这将既有助于已经签订合同的港口获得救济，又能激励国内生产。

“Second, USTR should exclude STS crane purchases from the tariff for those ports that signed contracts to procure cranes prior to the publication of the new tariffs. This would put all ports purchasing STS cranes on a level playing field.”“其次，美国贸易代表办公室应该将那些在新关税发布之前签订采购起重机合同的港口从关税范围中排除。这将使所有购买起重机的港口处于公平竞争的地位。”

The crux of the problem for US terminal operators is the lack of domestic container equipment handling manufacturers, and AAPA argued that this would take years, even with an announced $20bn government package to spur investment into the industry.美国码头运营商面临的核心问题是国内集装箱设备处理制造商的缺乏，AAPA 认为即使有宣布的 200 亿美元政府援助计划刺激对该行业的投资，也需要数年时间解决这个问题。

“It is unlikely that any manufacturers could produce American-made STS cranes with the necessary reliability, durability and specifications to support our seaports within the next several years, even though there is an eventual pathway,” the AAPA added.“尽管存在最终的途径，但在未来几年内，任何制造商都不太可能生产出具备必要的可靠性、耐久性和规格以支持我们的海港的美国制造的 STS 起重机。” AAPA 补充道。