The total port cargo throughput of Hong Kong has seen a sharp decrease of 13.8% in 2015, amounting to 256.6 million tonnes, according to the Hong Kong Census and Statistics Department. It is the biggest year-on-year drop in the past 10 years.
Further statistics from the department shows that year-on-year decrease in port cargo throughput were also recorded in 2009 and 2012, falling 6.3 percent and 2.9 percent respectively, when the world economy was hit by financial tsunami and Europe's debt crisis.
Within this total, inward and outward port cargo decreased by 7.5% and 17.4% respectively. The seasonally adjusted series enables more meaningful shorter-term comparison to be made for discerning possible variations in trends.
People's Daily says that the sluggish global economy is one of the main reasons to blame and the industry is in need of new markets to alleviate the situation.
"Maritime Industry relies heavily on trading," Sunny Ho, Executive Director of the Hong Kong shippers' Council said, however, the international trade is now in a difficult situation when purchasing power is weak and economic recovery is slow in Europe, and currencies largely devalued in Asia Pacific countries like Japan, South Korea, Australia and New Zealand.
Gilbert Feng, Assistant Director of Hong Kong Shipowners Association, points out that new markets are needed to boost Hong Kong's maritime industry. Hong Kong's maritime industry should transit towards a direction of high-value areas, such as maritime insurance, financing, legal service and training, Feng said.
This is not to say that Hong Kong's maritime industry is dying down, he said, but it is transiting towards a direction of high-value areas, such as maritime insurance, financing, legal service and training.