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Shipment Status & Support

North America · sea freight from Dalian

Shipping from Dalian to Honolulu

Dalian to Honolulu

Yellow Sea · East China Sea · North Pacific

Sea corridor illustration: Dalian to Honolulu, United States Simplified map with a curved corridor from Dalian via Yellow Sea, East China Sea, North Pacific to Honolulu. Illustration only; not a vessel track or schedule. PACIFIC OCEAN East China SeaNorth Pacific DalianCHINA ORIGIN HonoluluUNITED STATES DalianBOHAI SEAYELLOW SEASHANDONGDEPARTURE AREA
  1. DalianChina origin
  2. Yellow Sea
  3. East China Sea
  4. North Pacific
  5. HonoluluUnited States
Geographic corridor illustration only, not a vessel track, port-call list or sailing schedule. The loading terminal, carrier, transshipment and dates are confirmed per shipment.

Lithium batteries for Honolulu go out of Dalian, the north-east's gateway on the Yellow Sea. On the way they face the open North Pacific, where weather is the main risk, and they arrive at the port of Honolulu.

Honolulu means US customs filings that are due while the container is still in Dalian, and a supply chain CBP may ask to see. Below are 5 route-specific points to plan for, what we do about each, and the documents to have ready before booking.

What we need to start

  • Winter ice & spring fog
  • Dalian Dayaowan export
  • Supply-chain tracing file
  • HTS code 8507.60
  • ISF filer
Ask about this route United States ports from Dalian

Route profile

The Dalian → Honolulu route in brief

Sea corridor

Transpacific (North Pacific)

No canal or Red Sea passage, but a North Pacific crossing where winter storms have collapsed container stacks.

Import country

United States

US entry hinges on filings made in China (ISF and AMS), a traceable lithium supply chain and a road leg that is regulated as a hazmat move.

Blue harbour crane booms above a quay building in Dalian harbour
A container ship under way off the Guatemalan coast

Where this route gets difficult

5 points to plan for on the Dalian → Honolulu route

Loading port first, then the sea leg, then Honolulu and the United States market.

  1. Origin port

    Winter sea ice near Dayaowan

    The Bohai Sea and the northern Yellow Sea freeze every winter. For 2021/22 China's marine forecast centre expected floating ice around 15 nautical miles offshore in the northern Yellow Sea, where Dayaowan is, and around 60 in Liaodong Bay, with the peak between mid-January and mid-February.

    What Anxin does: For January–February sailings from Dalian we allow extra time between stuffing and the DG cut-off and reconfirm the vessel schedule the week before loading.

  2. Origin port

    Dalian's MSA says misdeclared battery cargo is common

    According to Dayaowan MSA in April 2024, lithium battery cargo was often under-declared or misdeclared because the rules are complicated. It responded with a dedicated desk and hotline, priority for EV batteries, and AI-based document comparison intended to reduce container openings, which means any mismatch between the declaration and its supporting papers gets flagged.

    What Anxin does: We reconcile the UN number, classification, packing group, quantity and SDS across every document before filing, which is exactly what an automated comparison will test.

  3. Sea corridor

    Hurricane-force winter storms, October to April

    NOAA's Ocean Prediction Center has recorded hurricane-force winds (64 knots or more) in mid-latitude North Pacific storms in every month from October to April, most often in December, with 15 to 23 such storms a season in its 2001–2004 study. These are not tropical systems, so they arrive outside typhoon season.

    What Anxin does: For October–April sailings we check blocking and bracing on stuffing photos before sealing and confirm the full DG data are on the manifest.

  4. Import country

    A US-only carton mark for SP188 shipments

    Packages of UN3480 or UN3090 moving under IMDG special provision 188 skip the DG declaration at sea, yet 49 CFR 171.25(b)(3) still wants the 'FORBIDDEN FOR TRANSPORT ABOARD PASSENGER AIRCRAFT' mark or a Cargo Aircraft Only label on each one, and on packages of batteries with or in equipment over 5 kg net.

    What Anxin does: When the shipper declares SP188 for a Honolulu booking, we check the carton photos for the US marking or CAO label before stuffing, not after discharge.

  5. Import country

    The FMC's 30-day rules on demurrage and detention bills

    If a battery container waits at Honolulu, the demurrage or detention invoice has to arrive within 30 days and carry accurate and sufficient information, or the charge is not owed (46 CFR part 541). The billed party then has at least 30 days to dispute it; in 2025 the D.C. Circuit struck down only the rule on who may be invoiced.

    What Anxin does: We keep the dates of discharge, availability and any DG hold for each container, so the importer can check invoices against them and dispute charges inside the FMC time limits.

Locator map of Honolulu, United StatesHonolulu
Locator map in the same projection as the corridor map; the dot marks the listed port position (21.30°N, 157.87°W).
Containers on rail wagons next to a terminal in Vancouver

Documents & compliance

What to have ready: Dalian to Honolulu

Anxin reviews documents supplied by the shipper, manufacturer and importer; it does not issue test reports, safety data sheets or import certificates.

Before loading in Dalian

  • UN number, class, quantity and SDS reconciled across all documents before the Dalian filing
  • Customs packaging use-appraisal result for the dangerous goods packaging (with the maker's performance appraisal)
  • Container packing certificate signed by a certified packing inspector after supervised stuffing
  • Transport-condition classification report where applicable
  • Load plan showing even weight distribution (no more than 60% of the cargo weight in either half of the container length)

For the carrier and the voyage

  • Stuffing photos before, during and after packing, checked for blocking and bracing
  • Condition statement: new, used, damaged/defective (SP376) or for recycling (SP377)
  • SP188 cartons: US 'forbidden aboard passenger aircraft' marking or CAO label

For the importer in United States

  • HTSUS classification from the broker (8507.60.0010 vs .0020 decides the Section 301 line)
  • Supply-chain tracing file for cells and lithium inputs, in case of a UFLPA request
Two power-tool battery packs side by side
Before you book

One consistent file

A document that is present but inconsistent holds a booking as surely as a missing one: the UN number, model name or carton count reads differently in the Dalian export filings, the carrier booking and the United States import papers. We compare all three before confirming space.

Carriers we book with

Our booking panel; availability on this lane and acceptance of the declared UN numbers are confirmed for each booking. It does not mean that a listed carrier runs a direct service on this route. Carrier choice depends on the trade lane, cargo classification and each carrier's dangerous-goods acceptance at booking. The final carrier is confirmed on the booking.

Risk & mitigation

Risks on this route and who deals with them

RiskWhereMitigationWho acts
Ice delays berthing in mid-winterNorthern Yellow Sea, Jan–FebExtra time before cut-off; schedule reconfirmedCarrier, monitored by Anxin
Declaration flagged by document comparison; container openedDayaowanCross-document reconciliation before filingAnxin with the declarant
Heavy-weather damage in a winter stormNorth Pacific, Oct–AprCINS stuffing checksPacking site, checked by Anxin
SP188 cartons without the US markingDischarge and onward truckingMarking or CAO label checked on carton photos before stuffingShipper, checked by Anxin

Questions

Dalian → Honolulu: questions we are asked

For lithium-ion batteries classified in HTSUS 8507.60.0020 and entered from 1 January 2026, USTR set the Section 301 additional duty at 25%; EV traction batteries in 8507.60.0010 have been at 25% since 2024. Other duties can apply on top. The importer's customs broker confirms the classification and total duty; we make sure the invoice gives the broker enough detail to do so.

Weather is the main risk on this crossing: NOAA recorded hurricane-force North Pacific storms from October to April, most often in December. We tighten the packing checks for those sailings.

Dayaowan MSA reported in 2024 that omissions and misdeclarations of lithium battery cargo were frequent because the rules are complex, and it uses AI document comparison. Consistent data across the declaration, SDS and packing documents is the main defence.

References

Where these points come from

  1. Section 301 Modifications Determination (Federal Register notice, Sept 2024) (Office of the U.S. Trade Representative)
  2. 49 CFR 171.25 – Additional requirements for the use of the IMDG Code (eCFR / PHMSA)
  3. DHS designates steel, copper, lithium, caustic soda and red dates as UFLPA high-priority sectors (19 Aug 2025) (U.S. Department of Homeland Security)
  4. Hurricane force extratropical cyclones observed using QuikSCAT (Mariners Weather Log 49-1) (NOAA Ocean Prediction Center)
  5. Sea ice arrives: what are the impacts? (Bohai and northern Yellow Sea, winter 2021/22) (China Meteorological Administration (from China Natural Resources News))
  6. Export dangerous goods packaging inspection: service guide (Chinese) (General Administration of Customs of China (Lanzhou Customs service guide))

Next step

From enquiry to import

  1. 1EnquiryCargo, origin, destination
  2. 2Documents checkUN 38.3, SDS, packing
  3. 3BookingAfter carrier acceptance
  4. 4HandoverAt Dalian
  5. 5ImportClearance at Honolulu
Each step is confirmed in writing; an enquiry does not create a booking.

Ask about Dalian → Honolulu

Origin and destination are filled in; add the cargo facts you have.

Sending this form starts a review; it does not confirm carriage. Full enquiry form

After you send it

We check carrier acceptance for Dalian → Honolulu before any booking, and ask for missing battery documents first.

All destinations from Dalian · United States ports

A forklift moving palletised cartons in a warehouse

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