East-west trade cargo analysis

摘要

The driving force behind cargo growth in the east-west tradelanes continues to be consumer demand in the US, followed closely by Europe. Economic conditions in the US remain strong, with year-on-year GDP growth of 3.6% achieved in Q3 2005, according to the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD). This is more or less the same as that recorded for the previous four quarters. While US trade growth is expected to remain high in 2006, the dark cloud on the horizon remains the country's escalating national debt. It is at record levels, and still rising. Taken to extremes, unless something more is eventually done about China's mushrooming trade to the US, more import barriers will have to go up.