Shipping

Major Merchant Fleets

The shipping industry moves millions of tons of cargo around the world. The combined merchant fleet of the world numbered almost 30000 ships in 1998, grossing almost 500 million tons. Panama has the world's largest merchant fleet, 4500 registered vessels in all. However, most of these belong to other nations. They are registered under Panama for convenience. Other large merchant navies include Liberia, Malta, Bahamas, Cyprus, China, and Russia. Each has more than 1000 registered ships. Tankers(See Commerce) account for a large percentage of today's cargo. Of the nearly 30000 total ships, almost 7000 of them are tankers. Dry bulk cargo ships account for another large percentage, numbering almost 6000 ships. Dry bulk carriers include coal cargo ships, colliers, and grain ships. Containerships, ships that carry containers of manufactured goods and machinery, number more than 2000. RO-RO(roll-on/roll-off) ships are ships that have extendable ramps often carrying cars, number almost 1000.

Pacific Ocean

The Pacific ocean has superseded the Atlantic as the major shipping area of the world since World War II. The Pacific was, in ancient times, a trading place for Chinese, Japanese, and other Asian peoples. After World War II, however, rapid growth in trade lead to trade between Far East and North America. Although Asian and North American trade has perhaps experienced the most dramatic growth in recent years, other areas have also expanded. U.S., Japan, and Korea trade with southern Pacific nations. Raw materials are transported from the east to the west and from southern pacific nations to northern pacific nations. Manufactured goods go the opposite way. In the U.S., the largest Pacific trading nation, Pacific trade is surpassing Atlantic trade. Japan is the second largest Pacific trading nation, importing raw materials needed by its industries and exporting precision products. The various smaller nations in the region account for a small percentage of the trade, but are highly dependent on the Pacific trade. Major seaports include Los Angeles, Long Beach, and San Fransisco in the west and Tokyo, Osaka, Pusan, Hong Kong, Gaoxiong, and Sydney in the east. Singapore is also of great importance as a gateway to the Indian ocean(See below) and the capital of South East trade.

Atlantic Ocean

The Atlantic and its seas has had a long history of trading. Among the first were the ancient Egyptians, Phoenicians, Greeks, and Romans. The North Atlantic was the largest area of shipping until World War II. Since then, it has declined because of the Suez and Panama canals and the growing importance of hte Pacific Trade. Major ports of the Atlantic include New York, Charleston, Rotterdam, and Hamburg. Dry bulk cargoes from South America and Carribean are shipped to the ports of North America and Europe. Industrial machinery, manufactured goods, and motor vehicles are shipped from industrial centers in the north to the south. U.S. and Canada also export bulk cargo: grain, coal, and ore.

Indian Ocean

The countries surrounding the Indian ocean have developed wince the 1950's, but most of the trade still involves the former colonial powers. Regional trade remains small because of political instability and incompatibility of supplied and demanded products. Therefore, much of the imports in the region are from other regions. South Africa and India are the only nations with large merchant fleets in this region. Other countries depend on foreigh vessels. Petroleum is the dominant commodity in commerce. Petrol is shipped worldwide. Other cargoes include iron, coal, rubber, and tea. Dhow vessels (See Southern Asia) remain important in the Western Indian Ocean, taking advantage of the monsoon winds, although most are now equipped with auxiliary engines. Most dry cargo shipping is now containerized. Container ships enter the Indian ocean through the Cape of Good Hope, the Suez Canal, and the Strait of Malacca from the Pacific Ocean (See above). However, large supertankers must detour around some routes because of their large size. Major ports are Durban and Singapore.