1. The
sea freight transportation volume is large. International cargo transportation is the exchange of commodities all over the world. Geographical location and geographical conditions determine that sea cargo transportation is the main means of international cargo transportation. More than 75% of the total international trade volume is completed by sea transportation, and in some countries, foreign trade transportation by sea accounts for more than 90% of the transportation volume. The main reason is the development of large-scale ships, such as giant oil tankers of 500,000 to 700,000 tons, bulk carriers of 160,000 to 170,000 tons, and large-scale container ships. The carrying capacity of ships is much larger than that of trains, cars and planes. It is the means of transportation with the largest transportation capacity.
2. The
sea freight transportation capacity is large. Sea transport takes advantage of natural waterways to extend in all directions, unlike trains and automobiles, which are restricted by tracks and roads, so their passing capacity exceeds that of other modes of transport. If the political, economic, military and other conditions change, the route can be changed at any time to the destination port that is conducive to loading and unloading.
3.
Sea freight is cheap. The waterway of the ship is naturally formed, the volume of the ship is large, the port equipment is generally built by the government, the ship is durable and saves fuel, so the unit transportation cost of the goods is relatively low. According to statistics,
sea freight is generally about 1/5 of railway freight, 1/10 of road car freight, and 1/30 of air freight, which provides favorable competitive conditions for the transportation of low-value bulk goods.
4.
Sea freight has strong adaptability to goods. Due to the above characteristics, sea cargo transportation is basically suitable for the transportation of various goods. Such as oil wells, trains, rolling stock and other super-heavy goods, other modes of transportation cannot be shipped, and ships can generally be shipped.
5. The speed of
sea freight transportation is slow. Due to the large volume of merchant ships, the large resistance of water flow, and the influence of various other factors such as long loading and unloading time, the transportation speed of goods is slower than other transportation methods. Faster liner sailing speed is only about 30 n mile/h.
6. Sea freight has a high risk. Due to the great influence of the natural climate and seasonality on the marine navigation of ships, the complex marine environment and the changeable weather, there is the possibility of encountering natural disasters such as strong winds, huge waves, storms, lightning, tsunamis and other marine natural disasters that are difficult to contend with. The possibility is greater than land and coastal areas. At the same time, there are also social risks in sea transportation, such as wars, strikes, trade embargoes and other factors. In order to transfer the loss, the cargo and ship insurance of sea transportation should be paid special attention.
