Analyzing the international connectivity of the major container ports in Northeast Asia

Abstract

PurposeThis study aims to identify the characteristics of the maritime shipping network in Northeast Asia as well as compare the level of port connectivity among these container ports in the region. In addition, this study analyses the change in role and position of 20 ports in the region by clustering these ports based on connectivity index and container throughput and route index.Design/methodology/approachThis study employs Social Network Analysis (SNA) to delineate the international connectivity of major container ports in Northeast Asia. Technique for Order of Preference by Similarity to Ideal Solution (TOPSIS) is used to identify each port's connectivity index and container throughput index, and the resulting indexes are employed as the basis to cluster 20 major ports by fuzzy C-mean (FCM).FindingsThe results revealed that Northeast Asia is a highly connected maritime shipping network with the domination of Shanghai, Shenzhen, Hong Kong and Busan. Furthermore, both container throughput and connectivity in almost all container ports in the region have decreased significantly due to the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic. The rapid growth of Shenzhen and Ningbo has allowed them to join Cluster 1 with Shanghai while maintaining high connectivity, yet decreasing container throughput has pushed Busan down to Cluster 2.Originality/valueThe originality of this study is to combine indexes of SNA into connectivity index reflecting characteristics of the maritime shipping network in Northeast Asia and categorize 20 major ports by FCM.

A longitudinal study of seaport selection: the perspective of container shipping companies

“…Literature review 2.1 Impact of COVID-19 on the maritime industry COVID-19 has had significant impacts on the maritime industry (Chua et al, 2022), including severe supply chain disruptions that affected lead times, production performance and demand (Min, 2023;Nguyen and Kim, 2022;Wong, 2023). Moreover, shipping lines reduced services or changed the number of ports in each route (Nguyen and Kim, 2022). When shipping companies did not obtain sufficient bookings from ports of operation, they reduced port calls or announced blank sailing until demand increased (Toygar et al, 2022).…”

“…, 2022). In addition, container throughput and connectivity in container ports in the region decreased significantly due to COVID-19 (Nguyen and Kim, 2022). Furthermore, seaports need to revisit their marketing strategies to align with the current trends (Jeevan et al.…”

“…2. Literature review 2.1 Impact of COVID-19 on the maritime industry COVID-19 has had significant impacts on the maritime industry (Chua et al, 2022), including severe supply chain disruptions that affected lead times, production performance and demand (Min, 2023;Nguyen and Kim, 2022;Wong, 2023). Moreover, shipping lines reduced services or changed the number of ports in each route (Nguyen and Kim, 2022).…”

“…When shipping companies did not obtain sufficient bookings from ports of operation, they reduced port calls or announced blank sailing until demand increased (Toygar et al, 2022). In addition, container throughput and connectivity in container ports in the region decreased significantly due to COVID-19 (Nguyen and Kim, 2022). Furthermore, seaports need to revisit their marketing strategies to align with the current trends (Jeevan et al, 2023).…”

Spatial Evolution and Governance Transformation of Cross-Border Regions in Institutional Transition: A Case Study of the Tokyo Bay

“…The Tokyo Bay Port Group has developed a distinctive division of labor in the management of the port group based on its own foundation and characteristics. The development of the port cluster management structure emphasizes the macroeconomic control role of the government and the integration of Tokyo Bay ports to form an orderly and coordinated system of division of labor to promote the development of the Tokyo Bay port area [30][31][32][33][34][35].…”