US port operators look to ease impact of looming tariffs on China-built cranes

Countering that trend is a priority for the Trump administration, whose officials stated in meetings they intended to put an end to such purchases, said Carl Bentzel, president of the National Association of Waterfront Employers (NAWE), which represents terminal operators and other groups.

Asked whether he expected the tariff rate to land at around 100 per cent when USTR issues its pending decision on the matter, Bentzel said, "I've been operating under the position that that's the floor. This essentially is a ban on the use of Chinese manufactured cargo equipment."

USTR and the White House did not immediately comment.