Report: Overcapacity chokes China coastal shipping

Report: Overcapacity chokes China coastal shipping    China’s state media reports its coastal and inland shipping companies are suffering losses due to overcapacity and high fuel prices.
   A report on the People’s Daily Web site from the wire service Xinhua quoted Xu Zuyuan as saying 30 percent of China’s coastal shipping companies are losing money and 40 percent of the country’s inland shipping firms are also suffering losses.
   “Data from the ministry shows China’s cargo handling capacity from major ports was 2.08 billion tons in the first quarter, up 14.3 percent year-on-year,' The report said. 'However, as oil and human labor are getting more expensive, shipping companies, especially those which are smaller in size, have suffered from shortened demand.”
   The report quotes Zhang Zuohai, general manager of China Container Line (Shanghai) Ltd., as saying “we are at the edge of loss since exports decreased with yuan’s appreciation,” and that some European and U.S. companies are sourcing from India and Vietnam.