Mediterranean Shipping Company

MNCs in the News-2017-09-08

The China Insurance Regulatory Commission states China is moving to increase foreign involvement in the insurance sector. In conjunction with the latest BRICs meeting, State Grid of China touts its contribution to and presence in Brazil. Kawasaki Heavy Industries competing for USD $3.2 billion contract to build subway cars from New York’s state-run Metropolitan Transpiration Authority. Foxconn joins bidding process for Japanese chipmaker Toshiba’s USD $19.5 billion NAND memory technology. North Korea’s missile launch explodes USD $1.5 billion South Korea’s shipbuilding industry deal with foreign firm. Beijing Hyundai resumes operation at stalled Changzhou (China) facility, but the firm still faces many other challenges. Freeport McMoran to retain control over operations of Grasberg mine, with USD $750 million investment to be made next year. Indonesia urges APEC to boost cross-border investment by supporting micro, small, and medium enterprises. Thailand's small and medium-sized enterprises urged to invest in Mandalay, Myanmar because of favorable economic and political environments. Tien Phong Industrial Zone JSC and Russia’s Seaport of Azov sign memorandum of understanding to jointly build Vietnam-Russia Industrial Complex. South Korean investment in Vietnam continues to soar as tariffs reductions from the ASEAN-Korea free trade agreement slowly come into effect.

Dr. Scott MacDonald's picture

Shipping, Trade, and China

Shipping remains a critical factor in global trade and also has been a key factor in the rise of the Chinese economy since the last decades of the 20th century. However, the 2008 Great Recession caught global shipping in a period of fleet expansion and greater capacity to carry freight per ship. Post-2008 the shipping industry has faced tough times. Trade has not recovered from levels prior to that year. Rates have been drastically cut, company revenues have plummeted, some companies went into bankruptcy (as with South Korea’s Hanjin Shipping in 2016), and other companies have merged.