Abstract:The freight market in the shipping industry is cyclical and volatile. In particular, global shipping has experienced huge changes over the past decade. In 2015, shipping slowed as carriers and ports were still adding capacity. This drove several shipping companies into bankruptcy, and others into mergers and new strategic partnerships to survive. The purpose of this special themed issue on global shipping and ports is to examine how the shift in global trade has affected global shipping, port competitiveness, and performance including shipping and port services, multi-modal shipping, hinterland services, maritime supporting services, linkages to global supply chains, as well as how shipping and ports respond to sustain their competitiveness. This first issue deals with how new competitive pressures affect decision-making and design in carriers and ports.

中文翻译：

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全球航运和港口：寻求持续竞争力

摘要：航运业的货运市场具有周期性和波动性。尤其是过去十年，全球航运经历了巨大的变化。2015 年，由于承运人和港口仍在增加运力，航运放缓。这导致几家航运公司破产，而其他公司则通过合并和新的战略合作伙伴关系生存。本期关于全球航运和港口的特刊旨在探讨全球贸易的转变如何影响全球航运、港口竞争力和绩效，包括航运和港口服务、多式联运、腹地服务、海运支持服务、联系全球供应链，以及航运和港口如何应对以保持其竞争力。