What globalization has done for the concept of free trade is what cargo ships have done for international trade. Not only has industrialization, outsourcing and the growth of the ‘multinational corporation’ increased international trade but advanced transportation has made it a lot easier too. Remarkably, a substantial amount of international trade occurs by transporting cargo by sea from one port to another.
With a life expectancy of about 25 to 30 years, cargo ships are designed differently from passenger ships purely for the purpose of carrying cargo, and are normally built using welded steel. Equipped with cranes and similar loading/ unloading equipment, these ships are classified based on their capacity, weight and dimensions and carry their cargo unpackaged.
Sea cargo is divided into two types such as dry and wet cargo, of which the former is transported using both bulk carriers and container ships whereas the latter uses tankers. Dry cargo consists of items such as wood chips, bauxite, coal, cement, grain (such as wheat, rice, soybeans, barley, oats, rye, sorghum, maize), iron, chemicals, dry edibles (such as sugar, livestock feed, seeds, flour) and bulk minerals. On the other hand, wet cargo consists of liquids such as gasoline, petroleum, liquefied natural gas (LNG), chemicals and liquid edibles such as fruit juices, vegetable and cooking oil.
Most large cargo ships are owned by businesses known as shipping lines, while smaller cargo ships (known as ‘coasters’) are often owned by independent operators. However, when it comes to international trade, the largest fleet of ships is owned by Greece accounting for 16 % of the world’s tonnage being transported around.
