News
The United Nations Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD) has unveiled liner shipping connectivity index (LSCI) for 2019, showing countries that have improved or worsened their positions in maritime transport networks.
China has retained its lead as the country best connected to others by sea, the index shows. The country's LSCI has increased by 51% since 2006.
LSCI means a country's position in the global container shipping network - its connectivity - and is an important determinant of its trade costs and competitiveness.
Five of the top 10 best connected economies in 2019 are in Asia, with Singapore, Korea, Hong Kong (China), and Malaysia rounding out the top-five list, each with a score of more than 100, according to the index's metrics.
At the other end of the table, small islands developing states (SIDS) have hardly seen any improvement, meaning trade in shipped goods remains problematic in those countries, with knock-on economic effects.
The LSCI covers 178 countries and shows maritime connectivity trends from 2006 to 2019. It is calculated from data on the world's container ship deployment and released annually.
