I've heard a story from someone working in naval logistics that they often ship loads of empty containers around the world (and back) just to avoid some contract clause that switch up the storage cost of idle containers after a few months. The incentive structures seem quite perverse.
Looks like there's barely any tax on fuel for ships and planes. I guess it's tricky to raise such a tax unilaterally...
"The extreme example of this price sensitivity was California’s 1991 decision to lift the fuel tax exemption and to tax interstate bunker fuel sales. Within a year, Californian bunker sales had collapsed as ships bunkered elsewhere especially Panama. The decision to impose a tax was reversed but California’s bunker business never recovered. "
