Hong Kong launches measures to protect exporters from shipment risks amid trade war

Hong Kong authorities have rolled out three new measures to insure local small and medium-sized enterprises against pre-shipment risks amid the escalating US-China tariff war, including providing a 50 per cent premium discount and extending the free protection period.

The measures, which take immediate effect on Thursday, were revealed a day after US President Donald Trump announced that he would be applying a 125 per cent tariff for China while implementing a 90-day pause that set levies at a “baseline” 10 per cent for most countries.

The pre-shipment risk insurance protects businesses from financial losses if an order is cancelled before shipment due to reasons from the buyers’ side, such as insolvency, repudiation of contract before shipment and country risks.

The three measures, launched by the Hong Kong Export Credit Insurance Corporation, include extending the free pre-shipment risk protection for policyholders of the “Small Business Policy” to June 30, 2026.

The “Small Business Policy” is tailor-made for Hong Kong exporters with an annual turnover of less than HK$50 million, covering contracts of sale and service they have with their overseas buyers or clients.

Another measure provides help to those exporters not covered by the “Small Business Policy”, offering them a 50 per cent premium discount on pre-shipment risk protection.

The remaining measure is to reduce premium rates for emerging markets to align with traditional major markets, which the government has said will lower costs for exporters to tap into Asean.