25th Norway Ship & Offshore Finance Forum

United States policy and the relationship between the US and China have dominated the discussion in 2025. What impact will these policies have on global trade, shipping and offshore, and the marine finance market?  What opportunities and challenges do and might they present today and in the future? And, when overlayed with geopolitical tension and increasing regulations, what are owners and capital providers prioritizing in today’s complex and dynamic market?

Keynote Address: The new US-China Superpower Rivalry: Implications for Shipping

The United States and China are engaged in a trade conflict. This rivalry is also leading to increased geopolitical tension, military build-up, and new technological developments. Professor Tunsjø will analyze how businesses and the shipping industry are affected by the US-China superpower rivalry and a new era of “conflictual coexistence”. 

Øystein Tunsjø is Professor at the Norwegian Institute for Defence Studies (IFS), which is part of the Norwegian Defence University College. Tunsjø is head of the IFS Asia Programme and specializes in US-China relations, geopolitics and how global power shifts shape Europe and Norway’s defence and security.

Tunsjø holds a PhD in International Relations from the University of Wales, Aberystwyth, a cand. philol. from the University of Oslo, an MSc from the London School of Economics and a MA from Griffith University, Australia. He has also been a visiting Fulbright scholar at Harvard and MIT. Tunsjø was a member of the government appointed Norwegian Defence Commsision of 2021, which submitted the NOU “Forsvar for fred og sikkerhet” to the Norwegian Government in 2023. He has numerous publications which may be found here.