Highlights of shipping industry in the list of “Belt and Road” achievements

By Li Zhenfu

Highlights of shipping industry in the list of “Belt and Road” achievements

By Li Zhenfu

From May 14thto 15th, 2017, China hosted the “Belt and Road Forum for International Cooperation” in Beijing. During and prior to the forum, a series of consensus on cooperation, significant measures and practical achievements had been reached among the governments of the nations, local areas and enterprises. The“Belt and Road” initiative also brings opportunities to the shipping industry.

Firstly, the “Belt and Road” will repaint the map of world shipping. The initiative of “Belt and Road”and its achievements will break the inherent pattern of the international trade network and will establish a trade corridor connecting east Asia and Europe to open an convenient trade corridor in central Asia which is originally an under-developed area in terms of economy by taking advantage of the development of transcontinental railway transportation and trade of neighboring regions. At the same time, this not only relieves the pressure from maritime transport, but also reduces dependence on the strategic artery, such as Strait of Malacca and Strait of Hormuz. In addition to the twoway coordination of 21stCentury Maritime Silk Road and the stable development of South line, with the intensification of global warming year by year, the ice of the Arctic sea is melting gradually, north line can be regarded as another Arctic line of Maritime Silk Road, its comprehensive development and utilization is becoming true day by day.

Secondly, Belt and Road will boost the development of shipping industry. In view of the existing conditions, in the process of constructing 21stCentury Maritime Silk Road, the construction of the infrastructure, such as ports, terminal and channel for “ interconnection” is the first thing. At present, a new round of investment for construction of Chinese port infrastructure has begun. China will focus on promoting the construction of the 21stCentury Maritime Silk Road including port infrastructure, land and water transport, promoting cooperation among ports, increasing sea routes andliners and strengthening maritime logistics information cooperation etc.

This will not only trigger and expand trade and cooperation of ports between China and the countries along the Belt and Road, but also inspire major ports in coastal areas of China to speed up construction and strive to be a new international shipping and transiting center. Under the background of 21stCentury Maritime Silk Road construction, China will also spare no effort to make a comprehensive sea and air transportation system with ASEAN.

Thirdly, Belt and Road will make trillions of fund going overseas. The countries along the 21stCentury maritime Silk Roads have different levels in infrastructure construction, having transport bottleneck and corridor shortcoming. According to the statistics, countries with low logistic performance are located in different areas. They are Burma and Kampuchea in Southeast Asia; Bangladesh, Pakistan, etc. in South Asia; Yemen, Syria, etc. in west Asia; Papua new guinea in Oceania; the efficiency of African ports are generally even lower. The ports eff i ciency has direct impacts on the results of Chinese shipping enterprises going out. The combination of “Belt and Road”initiative and the Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank (AIIB) will bring trillions fund going overseas, changing the backward situation of the infrastructure of the ports of some nations and providing strong support for China’s shipping enterprises going out.