Strategic alliances in liner shipping

Driven by significant market changes in international liner shipping, many shipping lines are seriously concerned whether they would be able to survive in today's highly competitive markets and withstand the severe competitive pressure or not. The current alterations in the competitive landscape, predominantly induced by the global economic slowdown, the increasing power of shippers, trade imbalances as well as the trend of multi-polarization in trade, have forced liner companies to reassess their trading strategy in order to map new winning strategies to consolidate the market position, reduce costs and increase efficiency. As previous research has revealed, strategic alliances can be an attractive strategic option for achieving global competitiveness and a common tool to better overcome and counter entrepreneurial risks and business hazards. The underlying academic paper reviews previous literature and related studies with the purpose to engage in a comprehensive review and research on strategic alliances in the last decades, giving special focus on international container shipping. The author analyses recent alliance activities and the transformation of the whole industry.