In the 1980's Thailand was plagued with congestion to such a point that international ocean shipping companies charged an substantial extra fee for service to Bangkok. Klong Toey, situated in the heart of southeast Bangkok, was heavily congested and waits for berth space took exceptionally long. The 1991 opening of Laem Chabang, a deep-water port approximately 90 miles south of Bangkok, eased congestion considerably and allowed for expanded maritime trade. But the new port suffers from traffic congestion, endemic to the Bankok area, and Laem Chabang has yet to operate at full capacity. Thailand's financial crisis has impacted the maritime sector and slowed completion of Laem Chabang's dredging to 15 meters and the completion of a new container terminal. Also moving slowly is the reorganization of the container terminal (East Quay) in Klong Toey, which handles 80 percent of that port's container traffic. Container throughput at Klong Toey and Laem Chabang are about equal. Song Khla, a smaller port in the southern peninsular, handles about 10 percent of the trade. From the perspective of the US agricultural exporter and the Thai importer, the ocean liner industry, composed of shipping lines like Sea-Land, Maersk, and American President Lines, are a vital link between US farms and the Thai consumer. Understanding which shipping firms are doing the majority of the business, how perishable products move through Asia to Thailand, how shipping firms price their services, and what can be done to maintain product quality while lowering shipping costs, is essential to establishing long-term, profitable marketing operations. US agricultural producers employ the latest 'cold chain' technologies to ensure a product can sustain shipments to far distant overseas markets. Thai importers can increase profits and ensure continued sales by delivering top quality products at reasonable costs.


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    Title :

    Shipping Containerized U.S. Agricultural Products to Thailand


    Contributors:

    Publication date :

    1999


    Size :

    12 pages


    Type of media :

    Report


    Type of material :

    No indication


    Language :

    English




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