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Posted: November 3rd, 2023
Examining the Effect of Chinese Policies on the International Shipping Industry
The international shipping industry is a vital component of the global economy, facilitating the movement of goods across oceans and continents. However, the industry also faces many challenges, such as environmental regulations, market fluctuations, geopolitical tensions, and technological disruptions. In this context, China has emerged as a dominant player in the maritime sector, with significant influence over the production, operation, and management of shipping equipment, vessels, ports, and services. This blog post will examine how China’s policies have shaped the development and performance of the international shipping industry, and what implications they have for the future of global trade and security.
China’s State Support for the Maritime Sector
China’s rise as a maritime power has been driven by focused state support since the early 2000s, when it joined the World Trade Organization (WTO) and embarked on a rapid expansion of its foreign trade. According to a report by the Center for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS), China provided roughly $132 billion in state backing to its shipping and shipbuilding industry between 2010 and 2018, including financing from state banks ($127 billion) and direct subsidies ($5 billion) . This amount does not include other forms of nonmarket advantages that Chinese firms enjoy from China’s state capitalist system, such as indirect subsidies, preferential borrowing rates, state-backed fundraising, and political protection.
China’s state support has enabled its maritime sector to weather market volatility, consolidate its domestic industry, and expand its global market share. For instance, after the 2008 financial crisis, which caused a collapse in demand for shipping services and vessels, China encouraged its massive state-owned enterprises (SOEs) to merge and acquire smaller competitors, creating some of the world’s largest port operators, shipping companies, and shipbuilders . China also pumped financial support into the sector and set ambitious domestic and global targets for its maritime development. For example, in 2016, China issued its 13th Five-Year Plan for the Development of Transportation (2016-2020), which aimed to increase China’s share of global shipbuilding output to 45 percent by 2020 . In 2017, China launched its Belt and Road Initiative (BRI), a massive infrastructure project that aims to connect China with over 60 countries across Asia, Europe, Africa, and Latin America through land and sea routes .
China’s Growing Dominance in the Maritime Supply Chain
China’s state support has resulted in its growing dominance across the entire maritime supply chain. According to data from the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD), China had the world’s second-largest shipping fleet by gross tons in 2020, accounting for 13 percent of the global total . China also constructed over a third of the world’s vessels in 2020, receiving 48 percent of the world’s shipbuilding orders . Moreover, China produced 96 percent of the world’s shipping containers, more than 80 percent of the world’s ship-to-shore cranes, and owned seven of the ten busiest ports in the world (including Hong Kong) in 2019 .
China’s dominance in the maritime supply chain has given it significant leverage over global trade flows and prices. For example, during the COVID-19 pandemic, which disrupted global supply chains and caused a surge in demand for consumer goods from China, Chinese container manufacturers increased their prices by more than 300 percent between June 2020 and June 2021 . Chinese port operators also imposed congestion fees on shippers due to delays caused by quarantine measures and labor shortages . These factors contributed to a sharp rise in global freight rates, which increased by more than 500 percent between May 2020 and October 2021 .
China’s Challenges and Opportunities in the Maritime Sector
Despite its impressive achievements in the maritime sector, China also faces many challenges and opportunities in the future. One of the main challenges is how to balance its economic interests with its environmental responsibilities. The shipping industry is a major source of greenhouse gas emissions, accounting for about 3 percent of global CO2 emissions in 2018 . As a signatory to the Paris Agreement on climate change, China has pledged to peak its CO2 emissions by 2030 and achieve carbon neutrality by 2060 . To meet these goals,
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