Explaining variations in national fleet across shipping nations

Many studies on national shipping attribute the declines in national fleets of developed economies to the lack of comparative advantage, but little has been done so far to identify factors contributing to countries’ shipping comparative advantage using a systematic approach. Although shipping markets are highly international and competitive, it is not clear whether tonnage owned by countries is governed by country-specific factors. This paper seeks to explain variations in nationally owned fleet across shipping nations. The main variable of interest is national fleet tonnage owned by country of domicile as opposed to registered tonnage. The results of econometric analysis using data from 84 shipping nations indicate that various country-specific factors do indeed contribute to variations in fleet tonnage across shipping nations, albeit at different levels of significance. Financial market development, external trade, ship registration, shipbuilding and shipping history appear to have the most significant impact, followed by the level of development and technology and maritime policy. Based on the results of analysis, implications for policy and future research are also discussed.     

Changing ownership structures in the Dutch fleet

The new Dutch shipping policy has given rise to high expectation and curiosity in the world of shipping. This, together with the obvious difficulties of an ex-post study of the effectiveness of such innovative policy, has prompted the authors to take an interest in attempting to investigate changes in ownership of the Dutch fleet 2 years after the new policy has been introduced. To do this, a rather new concept of 'flagging out' has been adopted, which is interpreted as a process leading to different degrees of 'foreignness' in a shipping operation. In this paper, a method to structure is presented, and ownership information, and changes in it are presented, that are essentially based on the theory of stochastic processes. The data used is the Dutch fleet data, which includes information on the nationality of the flag, parent ownership and management over the period 1994-1998. The results yield interesting insights in the shifts in the ownership and operational structure of shipping companies induced by the new policy. In particular, they allow one to establish the origin of new vessels, in which stage of ownership/operation it is most likely that shifts occur, and to determine the relationship between the different stages of the 'flagging out' process. These results, thus, enable an evaluation of the areas in which the policy can be expected to yield results.     

Changing ownership structures in the Dutch fleet

The new Dutch shipping policy has given rise to high expectation and curiosity in the world of shipping. This, together with the obvious difficulties of an ex-post study of the effectiveness of such innovative policy, has prompted the authors to take an interest in attempting to investigate changes in ownership of the Dutch fleet 2 years after the new policy has been introduced. To do this, a rather new concept of ‘flagging out’ has been adopted, which is interpreted as a process leading to different degrees of ‘foreignness’ in a shipping operation. In this paper, a method to structure is presented, and ownership information, and changes in it are presented, that are essentially based on the theory of stochastic processes. The data used is the Dutch fleet data, which includes information on the nationality of the flag, parent ownership and management over the period 1994–1998. The results yield interesting insights in the shifts in the ownership and operational structure of shipping companies induced by the new policy. In particular, they allow one to establish the origin of new vessels, in which stage of ownership/operation it is most likely that shifts occur, and to determine the relationship between the different stages of the ‘flagging out’ process. These results, thus, enable an evaluation of the areas in which the policy can be expected to yield results.     

A review of the European Union shipping policy

It is the aim of the European Union to develop a transport policy that supports its economic and sustainable growth and where the concept of sustainable mobility is a driver in the development of such policy. To achieve this goal, the European Union (EU) is promoting the shift of goods to unused existing capacity in rail and sea modes. As such, it is the objective of this paper to carry out a review of the European shipping policy at a time when the EU Member-States are suffering from high levels of congestion, noise and pollution that not only affect the environment but also the quality of life of all citizens. This paper considers the development of EU shipping policy in three stages.     

A review of the European Union shipping policy

It is the aim of the European Union to develop a transport policy that supports its economic and sustainable growth and where the concept of sustainable mobility is a driver in the development of such policy. To achieve this goal, the European Union (EU) is promoting the shift of goods to unused existing capacity in rail and sea modes. As such, it is the objective of this paper to carry out a review of the European shipping policy at a time when the EU Member-States are suffering from high levels of congestion, noise and pollution that not only affect the environment but also the quality of life of all citizens. This paper considers the development of EU shipping policy in three stages.     

Union rivalry and crew reform in shipping: A United States—Australia comparison

The national-flag fleets of most of the traditional martitime nations have, in virtually every case, been in decline in the 1980s and 1990s, despite the continued growth of ocean shipping. They have declined in terms of numbers of vessels and numbers of sea-going jobs, although not necessarily in terms of cargo carried. However, a number of those nations have responded to the changed technological and competitive conditions with some success by attempting to adjust crewing and work practices on vessels at sea. Neither the USA nor Australia has been in the forefront of such change. However, considerably more progress has been made in modernizing crewing practices and work rules in the Australian-flag fleet than in the US-flag fleet. There are a variety of reasons for this, inluding government policy. However, it is our argument that one of the principal reasons the US fleet lags behind the Australian fleet in the adoption of modern crewing practices and work rules is the much greater degree of union rivalry in the US shipping industry. In fact, while the degree of fragmentation and rivalry among unions in the Australian flag fleet has declined dramatically since 1980, their US cousins have continued, and in some ways expanded, their pattern of fratricidal behavior. First we shall discuss some of the technological and competitive imperatives that are driving human resource management practices in shipping and the crewing and industrial relations adjustments that are being made around the world to adjust to them. Then we shall indicate how the Australian and US fleets have responded to these challenges. This will be followed by a discussion of unionism in the Australian and US maritime industrics as it has devloped in the last two decades of the twentieth century. Finally, we shall draw conclusions about the impact of different patterns of unionization.     

The adaptation of the Polish shipping companies to market conditions

At the end of the eighties, fundamental changes took place in Polish shipping. Implementation of the market economy system was at first demonstrated in the introduction of the principles of self-dependence, self-government and self-financing of the shipping companies. Privatization performed a key role in the program of transformation of the centrally planned system into market oriented financially independent shipping organizations. The previous principle of the necessary participation of the home fleet in transporting domestic sea-borne trade has been mostly replaced by cross-trade. Many shipping services have left its basic ports in the country for a West European basis, securing alimentation of home and transit cargoes by feeder-service systems. Joint stock companies in shipping with substantial shares of foreign capital are welcomed, and the previously obligatory system of administrative methods of the state monopoly has been abolished. The principles of shipping policy represented in the past by Poland and also by UNCTAD in the 1960s have lost their impact and must be change and adapted to the new demands of the shipping markets.     

The adaptation of the Polish shipping companies to market conditions

At the end of the eighties, fundamental changes took place in Polish shipping. Implementation of the market economy system was at first demonstrated in the introduction of the principles of self-dependence, self-government and self-financing of the shipping companies. Privatization performed a key role in the program of transformation of the centrally planned system into market oriented financially independent shipping organizations. The previous principle of the necessary participation of the home fleet in transporting domestic sea-borne trade has been mostly replaced by cross-trade. Many shipping services have left its basic ports in the country for a West European basis, securing alimentation of home and transit cargoes by feeder–service systems. Joint stock companies in shipping with substantial shares of foreign capital are welcomed, and the previously obligatory system of administrative methods of the state monopoly has been abolished. The principles of shipping policy represented in the past by Poland and also by UNCTAD in the 1960s have lost their impact and must be change and adapted to the new demands of the shipping markets.     

'Government preference' and its influence on the shipping industry in Korea

The author suggests the existence of 'government preference', which has changed the structure of the Korean economy from that of a light-goods industry to one of a heavy and chemical goods industry; and which has affected the formation of an export-dependent economy. 'Government preference' has also affected the shipping sector which was favoured as a foreign-exchange earner, not as an income generator. Korean shipping expanded through market forces in its earlier developmental stage where tonnage of the Korean fleet grew moderately and profitability was reasonably good; and by 'government preference' towards shipping externalities (balance-of-payments effect and support for export industry) which became a prime concern of the government in later years where the fleet expanded rapidly in spite of negative profitability. It follows that under circumstances of 'government preference' which is strong enough to work and which prefers shipping's external effect to value added generated by shipping. Korean shipping might well record a poor performance in terms of profitability. This means that Korean shipping companies' prime concern lies in 'survival' not in 'profit'.     

标准化船队浅水槽运原理简述及模型试验研究

为了寻求一种用水量小、运输量大,节能效果显著、还可在干旱或非流域地区运行的浅水槽运方式,提出建设专用水槽,采用岸边（链轮传动或架空钢索）牵引方式在水槽中拖航标准化船队,并用计算机调控船队进出＂港口＂的浅水槽运模式,阐述水槽中浅水行船的基本原理。制作金属材料的模型船队,在水槽中进行模型试验,从原理上验证该槽运模式的可行性。     

Emergence of ‘new professionalism’ among Chinese seafarers: empirical evidence and policy implications

In this paper some of the factors that were influential in establishing a Canadian shipping policy position à proposissues raised by the UNCTAD V meeting are examined. The first of these issues was the question of early ratification and entry in force of the Conventin on a Code of Conduct for Liner Conferences. The second involved the relationship between flages of convenience and fleet expansion in the developing countries (LDCs). The third concerned LDC participation in the carriage of bulk cargoes. The author concludes that Canada's stance was determined by the fact that she was a major user of shipping withouta significant fleet of her own, and shows how she attempted to balance her sympathy with Third World aspirations with the demands of her own national interests.     

The role of the Federal Government in US marine transportation

The United States meets the world shipping crisis of the 1970s with a high-cost merchant fleet and a national maritime policy which needs clearer articulation. This paper examines the objectives, rationale and methods of implementation of the Us maritime programme with attention, finally, to the question of governmental reorganization.     

The role of the Federal Government in US marine transportation

The United States meets the world shipping crisis of the 1970s with a high-cost merchant fleet and a national maritime policy which needs clearer articulation. This paper examines the objectives, rationale and methods of implementation of the Us maritime programme with attention, finally, to the question of governmental reorganization.     

Some notes on structure and stability in liner shipping

Almost six years have elapsed since the passage of the Ocean Shipping Reform Act (OSRA), legislation that has led to significant changes in the structure of the US liner shipping industry. The European Union (EU) is poised to follow suit with the impending elimination of rule 4056/86, the block exemption from EU competition rules for liner shipping companies operating on European trades routes. The EU reform, however, is likely to go further than OSRA by prohibiting both conferences and discussion agreements on European trade routes. The outcome of such a policy is uncertain and the current review of it is several years old already. This paper is intended to provide some insight into the potential impact of regulatory reform in Europe, using the US experience as a benchmark. Specifically, the impact of OSRA with respect to industry structure, including its profitability, efficiency and what may be in store for the future is examined.     

Some notes on structure and stability in liner shipping

Almost six years have elapsed since the passage of the Ocean Shipping Reform Act (OSRA), legislation that has led to significant changes in the structure of the US liner shipping industry. The European Union (EU) is poised to follow suit with the impending elimination of rule 4056/86, the block exemption from EU competition rules for liner shipping companies operating on European trades routes. The EU reform, however, is likely to go further than OSRA by prohibiting both conferences and discussion agreements on European trade routes. The outcome of such a policy is uncertain and the current review of it is several years old already. This paper is intended to provide some insight into the potential impact of regulatory reform in Europe, using the US experience as a benchmark. Specifically, the impact of OSRA with respect to industry structure, including its profitability, efficiency and what may be in store for the future is examined.     

Strategic fleet size planning for maritime refrigerated containers

In the present economic climate, it is often the case that profits can only be improved, or for that matter maintained, by improving efficiency and cutting costs. This is particularly notorious in the shipping business, where it has been seen that the competition is getting tougher among carriers, thus alliances and partnerships are resulting for cost effective services in recent years. In this scenario, effective planning methods are important not only for strategic but also operating tasks, covering their entire transportation systems. Container fleet size planning is an important part of the strategy of any shipping line. This paper addresses the problem of fleet size planning for refrigerated containers, to achieve cost-effective services in a competitive maritime shipping market. An analytical model is first discussed to determine the optimal size of an own dry container fleet. Then, this is extended for an own refrigerated container fleet, which is the case when an extremely unbalanced trade represents one of the major investment decisions to be taken by liner operators. Next, a simulation model is developed for fleet sizing in a more practical situation and, by using this, various scenarios are analysed to determine the most convenient composition of refrigerated fleet between own and leased containers for the transpacific cargo trade.     

Refrigerated container versus bulk: evidence from the banana cold chain

During the last 20 years, the reefer shipping sector has been characterised by a gradual changing process, leading from specialised vessels to reefer containers. In fact, the reefer bulk fleet has experienced an irreversible decline, while the reefer container fleet has shown a continuous growth. This article investigates the current major factors shaping the reefer shipping industry, in order to understand the economic drivers inducing competition between bulk and containers. Therefore, a twofold analysis has been performed. First, an overview of the reefer market, including the cold chain, the demand for refrigerated products and the supply of reefer capacity given both by containership fleet and by conventional reefer fleet. Second, a specific case of the banana trade has been carried out for evaluating the revenues of each player involved in the banana cold chain followed by a cost analysis. The results reveal the market tendencies, focusing on the main sources of competition for bulk versus container.     

A decision-making solution to ship flagging out via administrative maritime strategies

The choice of flag is one of the main strategic/critical decisions for shipowners in the initial stage of maritime enterprises. On the other hand, flagging out has a great influence on the prestige and economic benefits for traditional maritime countries. To address this issue, this paper proposes a Multiple Criteria Decision Making (MCDM) approach using a Primarily Strategic Action Plan (PSAP) in a short-run period and a Secondary Strategic Action Plan (SSAP) for a long-term perspective. The case is demonstrated with respect to the flagging out issue in Turkish shipping fleet. It measures the decision-making tendencies of shipowners using Turkish National Shipping Registry (TNSR), Turkish International Shipping Registry (TISR), and Open Registries (ORs) as potential shipping registry alternatives. The model outcomes originally contribute to Turkish maritime policy, especially in terms of strengthening and reinforcing of TNSR procedures.     

集装箱船舶大型化对中国班轮运输的影响

通过竞争情报分析提供了各班轮公司未来船队结构和运力的变化趋势,由此观察到各班轮公司为了降低自身的营运成本,在最近几年大量订购超巴拿马型甚至更大型的集装箱船舶参与运输,但是却不能达到其预期的规模效应。原因就在于相当一部分成本随着船型的增大而线性增加,规模不经济。我们探讨了中国的班轮运输市场的几个重要特点:中外贸易的不平衡导致了货源的不平衡;未来贸易结构的调整会影响航线的布局和调派;贸易上的不稳定因素使班轮公司遇到外在的风险。这些特点会深远地影响集装箱船舶大型化的经济受益,相反的,集装箱船舶大型化的趋势也会加剧这些负面的影响,危及整个班轮运输市场。     

Overseas trade vis-a-vis overseas shipping: Growth and performance in India (1999–2009)

Maritime trade has been and even continues to account for about a lion's share of India's total cargo volumes. Despite the growth of multimodal transport (by land, water and air), shipping still continues to be the major mode of transport in the bulk carriage of country's overseas trade. In view of this vital role of shipping, in the first four decades of independence, under the initiative of planned development and active government support, India's shipping and port sector saw dramatic growth in their performance to build adequate national fleet, in keeping up with the transport of overseas cargo. However, the onset of economic liberalization in 1991 has given rise to many new dimensions in the development of the shipping and port sector of the country with a significant redefinition of shipping and port services, in response to the new global trend patterns. For instance, it has also established the new era of containerization in the mode of cargo delivery from the dominance of the era of bulk and break-bulk trade during the decade of sixties and seventies. Moreover, as global competition increases, in response to this emerging trade patterns within this country, India's volume of traffic growth also increases manifold. So, India's shipping and port sectors need, significantly, to build up and furnish their capacity by increasing the frequency of this mode of transport i.e. the growth of the national overseas fleet to meet this surging demand. This paper, therefore, have focused on this role of shipping in such rising overseas trade, with a view to examine the shipping performance (the growth of overseas fleet) in response to the growing overseas trade at all ports of India during the period (1999–2000 to 2008–2009), in terms of both a mathematical model and a graphical representation. Finally, it concludes that the absolute overseas trade, being highly import dependent, have led to a more or less stagnant performance in overseas shipping, owing to the lack of the adequate growth of absolute overseas exports during this period.