SA has more direct connections with main trading partners than most

South Africa is one of a handful of countries in the world to have direct shipping services to and from its main trading partners. According to the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development (Unctad), only 17% of “pairs of countries” are serviced by direct liner shipping services. For 62% of “pairs of countries”, shippers can find liner shipping connections that require only one transhipment; for 18.6% of routes two transhipments are necessary; and for 2.2% of connections traders would have to use a combination of services that require three transhipments. Unctad says the global liner shipping network has changed very little since the organisation first analysed the possible connections between pairs of countries in 2006. What has changed, however, is that “there are fewer companies providing direct services, and the vessel sizes have increased.”