Images of Combat Unmanned Surface Vessels (USVs) are displayed on a large screen at the Hanwha exhibition stand during Security Equipment International (DSEI) at London Excel on September 10, 2025 in London, England.
John Keeble Getty Images News | getty images
Shares of South Korean shipbuilder Hanwha Ocean fell more than 8% on Tuesday after China sanctioned five of its US subsidiaries, escalating tensions with Washington over their alleged involvement in an investigation into the Chinese shipping industry.
According to a statement from China’s Commerce Ministry, the approved subsidiaries are Hanwha Shipping LLC, Hanwha Philly Shipyard Inc., Hanwha Ocean USA International LLC, Hanwha Shipping Holdings LLC and HS USA Holdings Corp.
“Hanwha’s subsidiaries in the US have assisted and supported the US government’s investigations and measures against Chinese maritime, logistics and shipbuilding sectors. China is strongly dissatisfied and firmly opposes this,” a MOFCOM spokesperson said in a separate statement translated by CNBC.
The order will bar Chinese organizations and individuals from doing business with the sanctioned companies with immediate effect, the ministry said, adding that the move is aimed at protecting China’s sovereignty and security.
Hanwha Ocean did not immediately respond to CNBC’s request for comment.
Earlier on Tuesday, Beijing had confirmed that it had started collecting additional port fees on US-bound ships, while clarifying that Chinese-built ships would be exempted from the fees.
The move follows a US decision to impose steep tariffs on Chinese ships docking at US ports starting at 12:01 a.m. EDT on Tuesday. China retaliated by imposing a similar tariff of 400 yuan ($56) per net ton on American vessels starting the same day. Container ships can range from 50,000 to 220,000 tons.
Beijing has also unveiled a new framework for Restricting rare earth exports And expanded its blacklist of American companies. In response, US President Donald Trump threatened to impose 100% tariffs on Chinese imports, prompting Beijing to push for rare earth sanctions. “Legitimate” solution,
one in separate statementChina’s transportation ministry said it has launched an investigation into the impact of Washington’s Section 301 investigation on Chinese shipping and shipbuilding industries.
The ministry said the investigation would also assess whether companies, organizations or individuals had helped the US “carry out discriminatory restrictive practices” against China’s shipping supply chain.
