THE ORGANIZATION AND STRUCTURE OF THE DRY BULK SHIPPING INDUSTRY

Over the past decade one of the most important developments within the dry cargo trades has been the rapid growth in the volume of shipments in bulk form--dry bulk vessels (including bulk carriers and specialised ore/oil and ore/bulk/oil carriers) now transporting around 45% of all dry cargo trade, compared with only 20% ten years ago. This progressive bulking of cargoes has been accompanied by increasing specialisation, reflected in vessel size and design, which, coupled with the need to ensure a reasonable stability of ocean freight costs, has encouraged a preference for freight contracts and other long-term shipping arrangements. This has led to the growth of captive fleets, tied to specific commodity interests (producers or consumers) and, equally, to the development of national fleets to serve indigenous industry, although in this case motivation may be political as much as economic. Independent operators, in order to compete effectively for long-term business and in order to minimise the effects of periodic freight market reversals, have found it increasingly necessary to co-operate in the bulk shipping market, forming various bulk pools and consortia. This study is concerned with these developments in the dry bulk trades, looking at trends in the marketing and employment of vessels. Chartering practices are examined, indicating the cyclical nature of the market and the problems which are facing operators in the present recession. The influence of market trends on newbuilding activity is also considered, as are the effects of vessel price and operating cost escalation on profitability.

• Supplemental Notes:
  • Price is $85.00 for Overseas Orders, 35 pounds (UK) only.
• Corporate Authors:

  HPD Shipping Publications

  34 Brook Street, Mayfair
  London W1Y 2LL,   England 
• Publication Date: 1978

Media Info

• Pagination: n.p.

Subject/Index Terms

• TRT Terms: Bulk cargo; Bulk cargo handling; Bulk carriers; Chartering; Dry bulk carriers; Economic analysis; Freight traffic; Marketing; Markets; Oils; Ores; Trade; Trend (Statistics); Vehicle design
• Old TRIS Terms: Bulk oil transport; Bulk ore; Freight markets
• Subject Areas: Design; Economics; Freight Transportation; Marine Transportation;

Filing Info

• Accession Number: 00177407
• Record Type: Publication
• Source Agency: HPD Shipping Publications
• Report/Paper Numbers: Study No. 63
• Files: TRIS
• Created Date: Jul 19 1978 12:00AM