Port choice strategies for container carriers in China: a case study of the Bohai Bay Rim port cluster

The ports of Dalian, Qingdao and Tianjin are the largest ports in the Bohai Bay Rim and as such are among the fastest growing container ports in China. This setting provides an opportunity to analyse the dynamics of competition involved in inter‐port clusters. Competition in a port cluster can be examined from the perspective of port choice. To understand the key determinants of carriers' port choice strategies, on‐site interviews were conducted in the fall of 2013. Having identified the factors involved, we performed multinomial logit regressions on them. The results indicated that foreign trade routes and destinations, improved design capacity, demand from the hinterland and whether or not there is a rapid boutique line, can sway a carrier's decision towards either a single port strategy or a combined strategy of making two or three stops at the ports of Dalian, Qingdao and Tianjin. As a result of this research, using combined qualitative and quantitative methodologies, a better understanding of the competition, development and governance of not only ports in a regional area, but throughout China itself, has been achieved. This has contributed overall to a better understanding of the dynamics and interrelationships involved between ports in the Bohai Bay Rim.