Will the new concentrations in the field of the containerized marine transport assure benefits or determine damages?



The unknown quantities are various that return the future uncertain to evolve themselves of the world-wide market of the marine transport, beginning from the positive impact or negative that the new mega alliances between the main carriers will have on the segment of the containerized marine transport. It evidences the last relationship "Review of Maritime Transport 2017" published from the Conference of the United Nations on the Commerce and Development (UNCTAD), explaining that in the 2016 world-wide commerce by sea it has recorded growing of +2.6% being transported altogether by the ships 10,29 billion tons of goods, of which 3,06 billion producing tons of oil, oil and gas (+4.2%), 3,17 billion tons of the main solid bulk volumes between which mineral of iron, cereals, bauxite, alumina and phosphates (+1.6%) and 4,06 billion tons of other goods sand banks (+2.2%).

The precise document that however such rate increase has remained beneath of the average historical of +3% and that also in the 2016 question of marine transport it has continued to being inferior to the offer. For 2017 it is previewed a rate of growth of slightly advanced the marine transport and pairs to +2.8%, while the projections for the medium term indicate a rate of growth anniversary composed of +3.2% between 2017 and 2022.

In the 2016 world-wide fleet it has grown of 3.2% going up to 1,86 billion gross capacities in tons regarding 1,80 billion tpl in the year precedence, of which 534,9 million tpl of oil tankers (+5.8%), 796,6 million tpl of rinfusiere (+2.2%), 245,6 million tpl of portacontainer (+0.5%), 74,8 million tpl of ships for goods general (- 0.2%) and 210,0 million tpl of other ships (+4.6%) between which 59,8 million tpl of liquefied gas tankers (+9.7%), 43,2 million tpl of chimichiere (+4.7%), 77,5 million tpl of unit for offshore segment (+2.5%) and 5,9 million tpl of ferries and other fleeting ships (+2.4%).

The relationship finds that the persistent imbalance between supply and demand of marine transport has contributed to compress hires and economic results of the companies of navigation in many fields of the marine transport and that such situation of difficulty has characterized in particular the section of the containerized marine transport that the slid one they have recorded altogether an operating result of sign negative for -3,5 billion dollars. The specific document that between the main companies of navigation of the field of the container only little have achieved an operating result of positive sign, and however considerably inferior to that of the year precedence, that is Hapag-Lloyd with an operating profit of 140 million dollars regarding 407 million dollars in 2015 and CMA CGM with an operating profit of about 29 million dollars regarding 911 million dollars in the year precedence, while Maersk Line has totaled an operating result of sign negative for -376 million dollars and of sign negative it has been also that of the Orient Overseas Container Linens that have been pairs to -185 million dollars.

"A consisting question less regarding associated previewed how much previously to an important breaking in of ships - the general secretary of the UNCTAD, Mukhisa Kituyi has explained - it has determined a continuous excess of offer of ability to marine transport".

The relationship examines also the recent series of fusions and acquisitions that has characterized the field of the containerized marine transport that has determined a reformulation of the alliances between the companies of navigation and the creation of new concentrations. Al summit of the market us is time three main alliances: 2M Alliance, formed from Maersk Line (with the recent acquisition Hamburg Süd) and from Mediterranean Shipping Company (MSC), the Ocean Alliance, constituted from CMA CGM, Evergreen, COSCO Shipping and Orient Overseas Container Linens (OOCL), and THE Alliance, that it is composed from the Hapag-Lloyd (with recent acquisition UASC), from Yang Ming Line and the Ocean Express Network, in its turn formed from the concentration in the field of the container decided from the Japanese companies "K" Linens, NYK and MOL.

The relationship finds that the accentuation of the consolidation between the marine carriers could lead to a sure order in a market that needs a better management of the offer and of a greater efficiency. Moreover the sharing of the ability could improve the economies of scale and reduce the operating costs. The document of the UNCTAD evidences that however risks associated to the recent fusions exist and mega alliances between the containerized carriers: "the risk - it has specified Shamika N. Sirimanne, director of the division Technology and Logistics of the UNCTAD - is that the increasing concentration of the market of the container transport could carry to oligopolistiche structures. Currently in many markets of the Developing countries three suppliers of services have remained alone or quite less. The control organisms - he has emphasized Sirimanne- will have to monitor the developments of the fusions and the alliances in the field of the transport of the container in order to assure that in the market there is competition". According to the UNCTAD, a review of the norms could be necessary that discipline to the consortia and the alliances in order to prevent potential dominant positions in the market and in order to take into consideration the interests of the loaders, the ports and the carriers.

As for the ports, the relationship observes that these are under pressure because they must be confronted with more and more large ships, must get to terms with the impact on the market of the new shipowning concentrations and with the increasing threats capacities from computer science crime. The relationship finds that if the investments are essential in order to improve the ports, the amount necessary in order to receive more and more large ships can not be worth the ulterior costs necessary in order to adapt the harbour ports of call, unless the ships of greater dimensions do not guarantee also a greater inflow of goods. In case contrary the ports will invest in order to realize new docks and in order to acquire new means of handling with the single result to manage a volume of unchanged traffic goods.