The development of container shipping
following the establishment of international
standards for containers in 1966 initiated
decades of major changes in liner shipping.
The changes and challenges associated with
container shipping have been major subjects of studies by maritime economists
after 1973, for example, Gilman (1975)
on vessel size, and Gilman and Williams
(1976) on network structure in container
shipping.
Consistent with increased interest in the
application of cost – benefi t analysis to public
investments, Goss presented the methodology
for ports and the likely results in two
papers ( 1967a , 1967b ). The importance of
ship time and costs in port was refl ected in
a United Nations study (1967) and in a study
of the conditions affecting the actual time
that bulk ships spent in port (Heaver and
Studer 1972 ).
Recognition of the important effects of
the changes in shipping on ports is evident
in two books. Bird (1971) , one of a number
of geographers who have made contributions
to port economics, showed how the
competitive relationships among ports and
their relationships with hinterlands were
being changed by developments in shipping
and freight handling. The theme of integrated
logistics systems through specialized
terminals was given even more prominence
by Johnson and Garnett (1971) . They considered
the effects of containerization in
advancing door - to - door transport services
and changing port competition.
This period does not see much advance
in the study of freight markets. The dominance
of liner markets by conferences led
to a number of papers examining the economic
rationale and apparent effects of conferences,
for example Abrahamsson (1968) .
Heaver (1972, 1973) examines empirically
the effects of various factors on rates on
selected routes to and from North America.
The proceedings of a seminar in Bergen
(Lorange and Norman 1973 ) contain papers
designed to shed light on decision - making
processes in shipping management for bulk