Recently in the 2nd Annual Breakbulk China Conference and Exhibition held on 12th to 15th March, the Content Director of Breakbulk Magazine and Events Janet Plume took an interview from CNSS, talking about China’s break bulk market.

How do you find the current break bulk market situation?

The traditional heavy lift markets were Europe and Huston and Gulf Coast Region. And the reason is that if you have the big pieces you will have to bring them from all over the world and put them in Huston or in Antwerp, where there are transshipment ports, and then they can be shipped to Nigeria, Kenya, Brazil or some places like that. But now, the movement of ship is shifting, the big pieces are being made in Korea and China, and there is more and more production being done in Asia, so much of the sipping is out of this area.

Now the whole shipping market is faced with series of problems, such as overcapacity and high bunker prices. The problems are the same to break bulk market, but there are more challenges. For example, bulk carriers and container ships are also competing for the market share.

Offshore market as the new emerging sector has a close relationship with break bulk market, and what do you think?

The break bulk market is very much involved in the offshore market, because they carry the big platforms, and the steel cables that go on the bottom of the ocean, so this is the very import sector for break bulk and project cargo market, and more and more ships are coming to Asia to carry the cargo for offshore market.

What’s your opinion about the China’s new government and policies influencing break bulk shipping business?

Many people are worried about the new Chinese government’s reform plan which focuses on domestic consumption, and the steel is to be made in China and used in China. But right now in China, the demand is short, there is more capacity than demand. So China is a very big market, and China’s growth rate will continue to be very strong, although slow. We expect to see more exports, because China has great factories and great plants. And China is making all these things and so when they can sell them in China, they are going to look for chance to export, which is very good for shipping market.

Source from CNSS，Copyright ownership belongs to CNSS