Tariffs as a Tool for Successful Operation of Shipping Companies

摘要

Maritime transport is certainly an activity that acts in a complex, as by rule international environment, which is dynamic and unstable as affected by many economical, political, social, ecological and other factors. The activity which has been known for centuries is today increasingly ever strictly regulated and controlled, and attaining successful or optimal operation is a harsh effort demanding a lot of knowledge, skills and experience. In the period in which maritime sector is marked by huge number of ship operators whose operation is partially, but for sure not completely, characterized by the market situation, the ones who know how and can afford to apply different tariffs namely proportional, degressive, progressive or preferential tariffs are in better position as in such a way they keep their customers, furthermore they can attract new ones and all that in a way that profits are higher and the operation more successful. This means, in fact, that defined tariffs allow them to cover all the expenses while at the same time, already set up transportation conditions protect them. The ship owners are forced to control their business by comparing planned and realized operations and hence promptly react on deviations. This is done by calculating various indicators which are mainly deduced from basic financial reports and divided into three main groups: efficiency indicators, stability indicators and activity indicators. For each activity and therefore also for maritime transport sector the characteristic intervals for each values of the indicators are known and the ship owners can use them for orientation on the effectiveness and efficiency of their own management.