Hong Kong Container Terminal fell out of the top ten shippers committee: land greening politics are tense, Hong Kong companies’ production lines are shifting to Southeast Asia | Independent media report | Independent media

(Independent media report)Alphaliner, a French shipping consulting company, announced the 2023 global container terminal rankings. Hong Kong fell out of the top ten for the first time. Its throughput fell 13.7% year-on-year to 14.401 million TEUs. It lost to Dubai, the United Arab Emirates, in the ranking by 72,000 TEUs. 11. The throughput of Hong Kong terminals also fell for the seventh consecutive year, down 30% from 20.77 million TEUs in 2017. Lam Xuanwu, chairman of the Hong Kong Shippers Committee, said on a RTHK program that after Trump took office as President of the United States in 2016, Sino-US geopolitics affected the supply chain of Hong Kong companies, and many production lines were transferred to Southeast Asia, affecting Hong Kong’s exports.

Lam Xuanwu, chairman of the Hong Kong Shippers Committee, said on RTHK this morning that since the last U.S. President Trump took office in 2016, the geopolitical situation has affected the supply chain of Hong Kong companies in South China, and manufacturers have been told by buyers that “the most “It’s all produced in China”, so we moved to Southeast Asia to add production lines. He also mentioned that in recent years, even the production of raw materials has been transferred from China to Southeast Asia, which has affected Hong Kong’s re-export trade.

When asked about the fact that the port throughput of the mainland and Singapore is still rising, Lin Xuanwu pointed out that the production lines of Hong Kong manufacturers are mainly in the Greater Bay Area. In the past, due to the immature development of mainland terminals and customs systems, they used Hong Kong ports for exports. However, after years of development, and Under the mainland’s supply chain plus terminal planning, goods will be exported through mainland ports.

Lam reiterated that Hong Kong still has advantages, including being a fleet management center with high added value, and being a free port, Hong Kong is also convenient for land and air transportation. Ho Lak-kee, executive director of the Hong Kong Shippers Committee, mentioned earlier that shipping companies in the shipping alliance are gradually withdrawing from Hong Kong. Lam Xuanwu pointed out that these fleets are still maintained in South China, and Hong Kong is still a convenient transit point with fast customs clearance. It is also faster than the mainland.

However, Lam also admitted that the political environment is difficult and complex, and he is “sad” that Sino-US relations will only get worse in the next 10 years. Hong Kong needs to continue to speak out on the international stage and seize the advantages it still has.

In the rankings announced by Alphaliner, the first place is Shanghai with 49.158 million TEUs, followed by Singapore, Ningbo/Zhoushan Port, Qingdao, Shenzhen, Guangzhou, Busan, South Korea, Tianjin, Los Angeles Port of Long Beach in the United States and Dubai, United Arab Emirates. The latest data for Hong Kong is only 1440.1 10,000 TEUs. Hong Kong has ranked first for 11 consecutive years. Since then, it has declined year by year since the rise of Chinese ports. Last year, cargo volume dropped by 13.7% and fell out of the top ten. Compared with 2019, it fell by 21.3%. The number of TEUs handled that year was still 1,830.3 Ten thousand.

Transport Bureau: Different organizations have different ranking methods

The Transportation and Logistics Bureau responded in a Facebook post that Alphaliner is a private organization, and different organizations have different rankings. It pointed out that the ranking combines the Port of Los Angeles and the Port of Long Beach into one port, making it rank higher than Hong Kong. The bureau predicts that Hong Kong will rank 10th in 2023 based on the calculation method of another organization, Lloyd’s List.

The Bureau also reiterated that the strength of Hong Kong’s ports is comprehensive and should not be measured solely by throughput. Refers to the “2023 Xinhua. Baltic Sea: International Shipping Center Development Index Report”, Hong Kong ranks fourth; citing data from the Shanghai Shipping Exchange, the average stay time of ocean-going container ships in the port is 0.95 days, which is lower than the average of 1.85 days for the top 20 ports, reflecting efficient processing capabilities; Hong Kong’s ship registration ranks fourth in the world in terms of gross tonnage.

Legislative Council member Junius Ho proposed on Facebook that he advocated the development of low-altitude economic ports. He said that Hong Kong’s port business has been “diverted” from neighboring areas. He believed that if there is poverty, change and change will lead to openness, and some cargo terminals should be transformed into low-altitude economic airports in the Greater Bay Area.