Making Strategic Choices for Asia-Pacific Shipping

While the importance of strategy to an organisation's competitiveness is gaining wide interest within the maritime industry, very little industry-based research has been conducted on the subject. Of what is available, most research focuses on Northern Europe and Northern America, with scant regard for the Asia-Pacific, which has become a major shipping power in recent decades. To address these gaps in the literature, a three-year study focusing on strategic choices by Asia-Pacific shipowners has been conducted. The study analyses the strategic choices made by Asia-Pacific shipowners at the corporate level and develops a conceptual model of corporate strategy selection for Asia-Pacific shipping. Data are collected through a mail survey, interviews and computer simulation. Results show a high degree of congruence with two primary findings emerging: there is strong support for the set of assumptions on corporate strategic choices, but the assumptions have to be modified to reflect a general tendency among Asia-Pacific shipowners to combine different strategies for greater strategic control. © 1999, Palgrave Macmillan Ltd.