[bradreaves2]

The author states the purpose of the Jones Act was to preserve US maritime capacity. He then claims that because the US does not have a global hegemony on this market, the Act has failed. Therefore, we should end Jones Act protectionism to compete with China.

I don’t see how removing a guaranteed market will spur investment in the capital intensive activity of ship building.

It also occurs to me to ask how much domestic shipping traffic there is in the first place, and if it is actually price-sensitive. Unlike Japan and Korea, most of the US is far from coastal and riverine shipping lanes.