• Journal of Navigation and Port Research
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• v.46 no.4
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• pp.351-358
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• 2022

This study analyzed changes in the market concentration of Korean ocean-going shipping companies using shipping revenue based CR (Concentration Ratio), and HHI (Herfindahl - Hirschman Index) to examine the effects of the government's selection and concentration based the shipping reconstruction scheme. The results of this study showed that the market structure of the Korean shipping industry has changed from a competitive market to a rather concentrated market, as CR as well as HHI values have increased from 2019 to 2021. In particular, the market share of the deep-sea shipping lines has risen significantly compared to the intra-Asian short-sea shipping lines and the tramp carriers, implying that the Korean liner shipping market has become a monopoly, or highly concentrated oligopoly market. Compared to other shipping markets, the high rise in ocean freight rates (i.e. Asia-Europe America) was the leading cause of the increase in the revenues of the ocean-going shipping lines, and the increased fleet through preemptive government support has enabled them to achieve more revenues. As a result, it can be interpreted that the government's fleet expansion strategy has been more effective than expected, but it is too early to conclude if the market structure of the Korean ocean-going shipping companies has been strengthened.