Upcoming Trade Shows in China for Shipping

The shipping industry has been one of the fastest-growing sectors in China’s economy and boasts an unbelievable transformation from just a modest, largely domestic-focused industry in the late 20th century to the single most powerful player in global trade. Driven by rapid industrialisation and export-led growth since the late 1970s, China’s shipping industry changed in both scale and structure. The liberalisation of China’s shipping sector began in 1988 when the market was opened to foreign shipping firms. This ushered in a new era of competition and development, with three state-owned companies, China Ocean Shipping Company (COSCO), China Shipping Group, and Sinotrans, quickly consolidating power. By 2000, these three companies accounted for 60% of the national fleet’s capacity in international ocean shipping. Back then, most Chinese shipping companies were much smaller in scale to compared to foreign competitors, with average fleet capacities under 10,000 deadweight tonnes (dwt). Many operated just one vessel and focused primarily on inland river markets. But as China’s economic engine kicked into high gear into the 21st century, so too did the ambitions of its maritime players. By 2007, ocean shipping represented more than a third of China’s total fleet capacity, and Chinese carriers controlled 85% of container slots, which totaled over 10.7 million twenty-foot equivalent units. This explosive growth reflected not only state-owned enterprise expansion but also the rise of private shipping companies such as Hebei Ocean, which emerged as a key player and overtook Sinotrans to become China’s third-largest shipping firm. At its peak, the top four Chinese shipping companies, both public and private, controlled over 77% of the national carrying capacity, with a combined fleet of 1,629 ships and a total capacity of 92.2 million dwt. But this growth left China sensitive to global shifts and when the global financial crisis struck in 2008, Chinese shipping companies were hit hard.