Washington – One of the world’s biggest ocean carriers has just been “blacklisted” by the U.S. government.

Cosco Shipping, the fourth-largest carrier in the world and largest carrier from China, was named Tuesday by the Dept. of Defense as a “Chinese military company.” Two other Chinese shipbuilders – China Shipbuilding Trading and China State Shipbuilding – were also named.

Blacklisting comes with no direct penalties but can disrupt China’s ability to work with U.S. partner companies and can cause damage to reputation.

According to Bloomberg, China has been increasing its share in the global shipbuilding industry, accounting for nearly 60% of global orderbook in the first quarter of last year. The U.S. is growing more nervous over the country’s dominance, Bloomberg said.

The U.S. has a weak presence in the shipbuilding industry, with just one company – Austal USA – in the top 20 at number 14, according to port equipment supplier Ouco. Bloomberg cites that the U.S. builds just one container ship for every 359 that China constructs.

On the carrier side, the U.S. has just one company in the top 30 – Matson – at number 28.

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