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Fate of intra-Asia trade lanes is fixed to only growth there is - China's

TO Tom Wickmann, CEO of MCC Transport the only growth worth talking about - as poor as it is - is China's. "That's the only growth there is," he told the TPM annual shipping conference in Shenzhen.

Based in Singapore, MCC Transport is Maersk's intra-Asia specialist and as such its 21st biggest liner company in the world with a staff of 500, who operate 74 ships, ranging from 1,100 - 5,000 TEUers and call at 204 ports a week with agencies in 14 countries.

Shenzhen conference: Online marketplace leader to use its big data to mitigate port congestion

As market leader in the online ocean shipping marketplace market, INTTRA now searches for new ways to apply the data it collects. Thus far,  it reckons it has nearly 25 per cent of online booking market share and is headed to gain a 40 per cent tranche in the next few years.

Or so Jim Whelan, president of INTTRA Asia, says. While the company enjoyed a good deal of initial popularity when it first arrived in Asia a decade ago, winning over major carriers, it wasn't till later when it caught on with shippers - as something akin to the Travelocity or Cheapflights of ocean shipping.

Not long ago, Mr Whelan stood before the TPM Shipping conference in Shenzhen not only to extol the virtues of his New Jersey-based firm, but to offer observations on the data it has collected from shippers and carriers over the years.

Maersk expects cost cutting via digitisation, but all must play ball in supply chain

It is no surprise that a key to success in shipping is cost control, but what makes this more observant than obvious are new techniques including widespread unified digitisation, says Michael Hansen, vice president, global head of sales at Maersk Line.

What makes digitisation a game changers would be its global, holistic application, throughout the supply chain within the New Normal of low rates, low oil, massive overcapacity and equally massive corporate consolidation.

As China fades as the filler of low-end boxes, south and south east Asia take centre stage

AN east-west inter-port rivalry has taken shape along the richest of the world's trade lanes as each seeks to take advantage of the disadvantages posed by mega ships that have come to dominate the trade.

As low-end manufacturing migrates from a more affluent China to areas of cheaper labour in south east and south Asia, and ships become bigger and carriers more cost conscious, transshipment ports along the way have come into their own as fierce rivals.

China Trade Specialists

Europe Trade

Dec, 2016

U.S. Trade

Nov, 2016

Intra Asia Trad

Oct, 2016

Mediterranean &
Africa Trade

Sep, 2016