And the economy remains bad
When I buy goods overseas, I expect them to be shipped by air and for them to get to me in good time. I think a week is a reasonable allowance for my purchases to reach me. It’s almost inconceivable to me that a specific order should take more than a week to get to me from any corner of this world.
However, personal orders are not the only goods that travel the globe. Consumer goods traverse the world daily, delivering to us the food and material possessions which sustain our selves and identities. It’s said that 90% of world trade is transported by the sea. As one of the cheapest modes of transportation, carriage of goods by sea is the most economical option when it comes to large and frequent quantities of goods.
When world trade suffers, one of the industries most directly hit is the maritime industry. Not only are end-product consumer goods not being transported due to the lack of demand, this trickles upstream as well. The fall in demand leads to a reduction in production of such goods, leading to a reduction in the amount of raw materials to be transported. Facing this two-fold hit in cargo demand, many shipping companies choose to lay up their ships at various ports, subject to the port authority’s approval.
The laying up of ships requires stripping the ship to its skeletal crew such as to reduce the cost of its maintenance. In the absence of sufficient cargo, most shipping firms find that it is much more economical to let their ships lay idle at their lowest cost, than to allow their ship to travel long distances with minimal cargo.
However, not all ports allow the laying up of ships. Singapore requires that ships leave after a certain number of days in port. For all its strict enforcement, Singapore has not been successful in chasing away all idle ships. Most of them get around this by anchoring their ships just outside Singapore’s port limits, thereby rendering the Singapore authority helpless, as their jurisdiction is only within our port limits.
Unlike a simple carpark where cars stop at designated lots that allow easy departure, the parking of these ships outside of Singapore’s waters and anchorages poses a real danger to other ships. Over-crowding in an unregulated region leads ships to anchor in close proximity in drifting waters, posing real danger to passing ships. In addition, should any of the anchored ships need to move off, careful navigation is required with nary a margin for error. Should any accident happen out at sea, not only are shipping firms affected, but the surrounding sea waters, and consequently the surrounding ships, are in danger of being caught in any spillage of bunker or waste from the damaged ships.
The sheer number of ships cannot be comprehended from land. It wasn’t until I took a night flight that it was finally revealed to me how many ships there are near Singapore’s waters. The bright lights from laid-up ships were numerous, amalgamating to form a glistening cluster. It would be my fondest farewell to this airspace.
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