Why It Matters

The House Foreign Affairs Subcommittee on East Asia and the Pacific will hold a hearing on July 22 examining China's dominance in commercial shipbuilding and U.S. maritime manufacturing policy. The hearing comes as the United States builds less than 1% of the world's commercial ships and follows recent debate over the Trump administration's Section 301 trade actions affecting China's maritime sector.

Within days of the Trump administration suspending certain Section 301 port fees on Chinese goods, the global shipping company, Maersk, awarded a $2.3 billion shipbuilding contract to a Chinese shipyard instead of a South Korean competitor. The hearing will examine broader questions about U.S. shipbuilding capacity and competition with China.

Maritime Manufacturing Policy Under Pressure

President Trump signed an executive order on maritime dominance in April 2025, directing the administration to strengthen the U.S. shipbuilding industry. However, the subsequent pause on tariffs appeared to undermine that goal.

Marine industry groups and congressional allies have been actively lobbying on both sides of the divide, pressing the administration on how to modify the Section 301 action on China's targeting of maritime, logistics, and shipbuilding sectors while pursuing the maritime action plan itself.

The hearing reflects a recognition that countering China shipbuilding requires sustained pressure, not policy whiplash. Major maritime industry stakeholders have intensified their presence on Capitol Hill, filing lobbying disclosures focused explicitly on the Section 301 tariffs and the administration's maritime dominance initiative.

The Hearing

Rep. Young Kim (R-CA) is chair of the House Foreign Affairs Subcommittee on East Asia and the Pacific. Rep. Ami Bera (D-CA) serves as ranking member.

The witness panel includes Brent Sadler of The Heritage Foundation, J. James Kim of the Henry L. Stimson Center and Matthew Funaiole of the Center for Strategic and International Studies, who are scheduled to discuss U.S. policy options for addressing China's maritime and shipbuilding capabilities.

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