Following news of Hanjin’s collapse, Chinese ports are also suffering, with ports and container terminals struggling with less and less calls, reported the Financial Times.
The Port of Hong Kong is a port which has suffered due to this slowdown, having handled 10% less containers in H1, 2016, in comparison to the same period in 2015 and faces a fifth year in a row of declines.
Technical Paper: Automating Ports: Mitigating Union Friction
Olaf Merk, Administrator of Ports and Shipping at the ITF of the OECD, said: “Shipping is getting more concentrated, with alliances rationalising their networks, which means fewer port calls and reduced frequency.
“It’s a dangerous game for ports because if you don’t get one or more of the alliances, you can be a big-time loser.
“The alliances shakeup will also have effects on terminals. Some terminals are joint-ventures between alliance partners, so if alliances change, these joint-ventures might come under pressure.”
Together with alliance issues is the problem of port overcapacity, which could be a factor causing ports to swing from profits to losses in 2016.
(Source: Financial Times / YouTube)
