The United States Trade Representative held its second day of this week’s hearings on the fines that would be levied under Section 301 of U.S. trade law on Wednesday, with over 300 trade groups and other interested parties warning the government across comments letters and in testimony that the U.S. is no position to win an economic war that places ocean carriers using Chinese-made vessels in the middle. Soon, Chinese-made vessels will represents 98% of the trade ships on the world’s oceans.

The policy proposal, begun under the Biden administration and culminating in a January report concluding China’s shipbuilding industry had an unfair advantage, would allow the U.S. government to impose steep levies on Chinese-made ships arriving at U.S. ports. For Chinese-owned operators (such as Cosco), a service fee of up to $1 million could be charged on each vessel. For non-Chinese-owned ocean carriers with fleets containing Chinese-built vessels, the service fee would be up to $1.5 million for each U.S. port of call.