PolyU study: Hong Kong’s shipping industry must shift from throughput-driven competition to high value-added services
Hong Kong’s shipping industry is at a critical stage of transformation and upgrading. A PolyU study has found that the city’s shipping ecosystem is gradually evolving from a traditional container terminal-led model towards a new diversified landscape jointly driven by freight forwarding, maritime services, insurance, finance, and cross-boundary collaboration.
The study is led by Prof. Mike LAI Kee-hung, Co-Director of the Research Centre for Environmental, Social, and Governance Advancement (RCESGA), Associate Dean (Academic Support) of the Faculty of Business, Interim Head of the Department of Logistics and Maritime Studies, and Chair Professor of Shipping and Logistics. It notes that, while container terminals remain an important foundation of the shipping system, the core momentum behind the industry’s sustainable development has increasingly shifted to freight forwarders and a range of professional services with stronger digital capabilities and greater efficiency in resource integration. Amid intensifying port competition within the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area and uncertainty arising from the restructuring of global supply chains, Hong Kong must move beyond a development mindset focused solely on growth in throughput. To consolidate its position as an international shipping centre, the city should instead strengthen the connectivity and transformation capacity of its overall shipping ecosystem.
Prof. Lai suggests that Hong Kong should focus on three key priorities in the future: accelerating port digitalisation and data connectivity; strengthening collaboration with Greater Bay Area cities in sea-land-air intermodal transport; and further expanding and upgrading high value-added professional services such as marine insurance, maritime finance, compliance advisory, and green finance. These efforts will help drive Hong Kong’s transition from a “port city” to a comprehensive international shipping services centre.
Online coverage: Wen Wei Po - https://polyu.me/4vJKDPf
理大研究：香港航運須從吞吐量競爭走向高增值服務
香港航運業正處於轉型升級的關鍵階段。香港理工大學一項研究指出，本港航運生態正由過往以貨櫃碼頭為核心的傳統模式，逐步轉向由貨運代理、海運服務、保險、金融及跨境協同共同支撐的多元化新格局。
該研究由環境，社會，及治理促進研究中心聯席主任、工商管理學院副院長（學務統籌）、物流及航運學系署理系主任、航運及物流講座教授黎基雄教授領導。研究認為，貨櫃碼頭仍然是航運體系的重要基礎，但真正推動行業持續發展的核心動力，已逐漸轉移至數碼化能力較強、資源整合效率更高的貨運代理及各類專業服務。面對粵港澳大灣區港口競爭日趨激烈，以及全球供應鏈重組帶來的不確定性，香港若要鞏固其國際航運中心地位，必須由過往單純追求吞吐量的發展思維，轉向提升整體航運生態的連接能力、協同效應與轉化能力。
黎教授建議，香港未來應聚焦三大方向，包括加快港口數碼化及資料互聯互通、加強與大灣區城市在陸海空聯運方面的協作，以及進一步做大做強航運保險、航運金融、合規顧問及綠色融資等高增值專業服務，方能推動香港由「港口城市」升級為全面的國際航運服務中心。
網上報導：文匯報 - https://polyu.me/4vJKDPf
