Shippers' Port and Carrier Selection Behaviour in China: A Discrete Choice Analysis

Transportation decisions of shippers are crucial for policy formulation in ports and shipping lines. Shippers' port selection, for export or import cargo, depends on the location of the shipper; preferences for shipping line services; and facilities offered by ports. In this paper, we model the port choice behaviour of shippers, in China, using a shipper level database obtained from a survey of shippers of containerised cargo in China in 1998. We use a discrete choice model where each shipper faces a choice of 14 alternatives, based on shipping line and port combinations, and makes his decision on the basis of various shipper and port characteristics. The results indicate that the distance of the shipper from port, distance to destination (in case of exports), distance from origin (in case of imports), port congestion, and shipping line's fleet size play an important role. We estimate elasticities of changes in these variables and their impact on the market share of shipping line–port combinations. Maritime Economics & Logistics (2003) 5, 23–39. doi:10.1057/palgrave.mel.9100062