“As a result of the U.S. midterm elections, the short-term impact on the marine and fisheries sector is limited.”

On the 10th, the Korea Maritime Institute (KMI) presented a report titled 'Analysis of the Impact of Marine and Fisheries Results of the U.S. Midterm Elections' on the impact of policy changes after the election on the domestic marine and fisheries industry and the direction of response by sector.

The report predicts that even if the Democratic Party, which has secured a majority of seats in both the House and Senate, strengthens congressional checks on the Trump administration, the existing tariff and protectionist stance is likely to be largely maintained.

Accordingly, while the short-term impact on the domestic maritime and fisheries sector is limited, external risk factors such as uncertainty in trade policy due to conflict between the US administration and Congress, the situation in the Middle East, and sanctions against Russia are expected to continue.

In the field of 'international maritime norms and economic security', the report predicts that while the United States' passive participation in multilateral maritime norms will continue, deep-sea mineral development, passage through the Strait of Hormuz, and illegal transshipment will emerge as major issues.

In the Arctic, it was predicted that pressure from Russia could be strengthened under the leadership of Congress, and that icebreaker expansion would continue, but uncertainty would increase in Alaska oil and gas development.

In the 'fishery sector', it was analyzed that export competition for some Korean seafood products may intensify according to the US priority seafood strategy, and that it is necessary to pay attention to future tariff adjustments and changes in import regulations.

In the 'shipping and logistics sector', it was predicted that the short-term impact of the US fiscal and tariff policy on maritime freight rates would be limited, but there was still a possibility of changes in oil tanker freight rates due to disruptions in operations in the Middle East.

In addition, it is predicted that demand for local inland logistics in the United States will increase due to the expansion of domestic companies' investment in the United States.

In the 'port sector', it was expected that the short-term additional impact of the midterm elections would be limited, but it was emphasized that there was a need to continuously look at changes in major items, considering that the decline in steel and container export volume increased during the period of strengthened tariffs.

The report proposed expanding participation in discussions on international maritime norms, strengthening maritime security response, expanding cooperation on the Arctic route using the Korea-U.S.-Japan Arctic and Pacific Partnership (TAPP), responding to changes in tariffs and import regulations for marine products and strengthening raw and auxiliary raw material history management, preparing for changes in maritime freight rates, discovering local logistics businesses in the U.S. and examining discussions on international environmental regulations such as IMO, and examining port cargo volume and transshipment trends for each major export item.

In particular, the report added that there is a need to continuously monitor changes in U.S. policy and the international situation and establish a preemptive response system tailored to risk factors in each field.