Value of water-borne foreign trade (including reexports) of the United States carried in American and foreign vessels 1922-33

COMPARISON OF INTERNATIONAL TRAde and shipPING

It would seem reasonable that the volume of foreign-trade shipping owned by any nation should be commensurate with that nation's contribution to international trade. Thus, a country whose foreign trade represents 15 percent of world international trade might be expected to own 15 percent of the world foreign-trade fleet.

Chart 2 shows a comparison of the percentage of world trade represented by United States trade with the percentage of the world foreign-trade fleet represented by the United States foreign-trade fleet for each of the calendar years 1929 to 1933, inclusive.

The chart shows that for the years 1929 to 1933 inclusive the percentage of total world trade represented by the foreign trade of the United States varied from 11.1 percent to 14.1 percent, while the percentage of the world foreign-trade fleet represented by the United States foreign-trade fleet varied from only 5.3 percent to 7.4 percent.

It should be noted that during the past 5 years there has been a declining trend in the percentage of the world foreign-trade fleet represented by the United States foreign-trade fleet.

Comparison of world foreign trade and world shipping engaged in that trade with United States foreign trade and the American foreign-trade fleet

1

SOURCE: United States Shipping Board Bureau, Department of Commerce, and Lloyd's Register of shipping.

OWNERSHIP OF WORLD SEAGOING MERCHANT FLEET

The world merchant fleet of ocean-going vessels of all types and of 2,000 gross tons and over, on January 1, 1934, totaled approximately 9,000 vessels of over 49,000,000 gross tons. These figures do not include vessels on the Great Lakes, but they do include vessels in coastwise trade and vessels which are laid up.

De owneral ip of this tent age is shown in the following table

Great Brita i owra about 2,700 pee art vesse's totaling over 16.600,000 guas tors and her merchant feet stands tituber 1 among the merchant fleets of

D'e United States star is number 2 in rank and owns over 1,500 merchant vessels of 9,006 000 grona, torn Those vessels do not rej resent our foreigntra le feet are, however, but include vessels in ecastwise trade and vessels ikte buffing Boards she fleet.

As a matter of fact, at the beginning of 1934 there were only 429 American vesse a, aggregating 2,702,000 groma toza, actively er gaged in our foreign trade.

Ocean going merchant feets of principal maritime nations as of Jan 1, 1934 ) tuna ne over an-i ex-'u je Great Lakes vessels]

In pumming, it may be of a terest to record that the entire world merchant fleet, Donatig vense is each of 100 grow tors or over and it elading, wooden vessels, sa.. sata, barges and other ves els rot of seagoing types, total approximately 31 000 vessel's aggregati g over 65 000 000 gross to is

The following tale shown the growth of thần told age at 5 year intervals from 1900 up to cate The growth of American stippi g and of British shippig is auso shown, in the case of American shipping, vessels on the Great Lakes are excluded

Axir heated in the table a large part of the United States merchant fleet was buat during the World War period à od is now over 15 years ol 1

WORLD TONNAGE IN FOREIGN TRADE ONLY

The total world tonnage of ocea" goug vessels engaged in the foreign traie alze aggregates approximates 37 400 000 gross tors Ihas figure excludes tarkers which must be specis, vec mitered bees ae of their particiar type of service It also excitdies Vessis that are et gagi 1 1 the forego trade on the Great Lakes a «d it is united to verseis cach of 2000 gross to a or over. The distribution of this tot.ringe ano: g the principal maritane nations is shown in tale ill, on page 435

Growth of world tonnage, British lonnage, and American tonnage, excluding Great Lake renal are imm

1900..

1905.

Growth of world merchant tonnage since 1900

[Figures show gross tonnage of merchant vessels each of 100 gross tons or over]

Year

1910..

1915.

1920.

1925.

1930.

1934.

Source: Lloyd's Register of Shipping.

TABLE III.-Vessels, each of 2,000 gross tons or over, normally employed in the carriage of goods and passengers in the international trade as of Dec. 31, 1933

SHARE OF SHIPPING OF PRINCIPAL NATIONS IN THE CARRIAGE OF THEIR OWN FOREIGN TRADE

The vessels of principal foreign nations carry over 50 percent of their own water-borne foreign trade, while American vessels carry only about one-third of the water-borne foreign trade of the United States. This is shown on table IV.

TABLE IV.-Percentage of water-borne foreign trade of principal nations carried in their own vessels

[NOTE.-The above percentages were compiled from most recent information available as to the entrances and clearances of seagoing vessels with cargo.]

MODERN TONNAGE IN PRINCIPAL MERCHANT FLEETS

Chart 5 shows the percentage of seagoing merchant tonnage owned by the principal maritime nations on January 1, 1934, which has been built within the past 10 years.

A glance at the chart is sufficient to show that the United States is behind every other principal nation in the percentage of its merchant fleet represented by modern tonnage.

In cargo vessels, which make up a large share of our fleet, the United States has replaced only 1 percent of its tonnage in the past 10 years while Great Britain has replaced 41 percent, Germany 31 percent, France 15 percent, Italy 14 per cent, and Japan 17 percent.

In tanker tonnage the United States is far behind every other maritime nation in modern tonnage, its percentage being only 11 percent as compared with 51

pement for Great Britain, 41 percent for Germany, 49 percent for France, 18 pervert for I'aïy, and bi perecht for Japan

i skit ganto eers, ferat că ad types of vessels, the Un ted States has built only 11 percent of its entire there' a' t fleet mitee January 1, 1924 During the same or at Girest Britar) sabot 42 perrett, Germany 38 percent. France 25 percent, ay 25 percent, and Japan 21 percent

Grom tony age of merchant feets of niz principal maritime nations on Jan 1, 1944, class red according to age

[Figures are fit veeselo eur? of 2.0 gr al cor ver They exciale Great Lakes veese's an i the Floopy -ng

Cargo vessie make up the largest potentage of the tetrage of the foreignet oft erited states Most of our cargo ve ses were talt dang tre W. War tadi Ten.'l pereet tage of sex goug frea ters but for the United Nt.' « mitee 1922 in ect trust with much Vencis t it for Great Britain, Gorras ru a*!Îni ་་ "་

In the by : lig of moveri, cargo vesseis, Great He is far ahead of every other i' ral marire la*. *1 From Ja ary 1, 122, to Ja' arv 1, 1454, abort 4 90N NO gross tot s of cargo vesse's have beer. b. • for for t.** (W! CT** na comu arod with 92 – (64) gross tons for GermLAT.V, 4 4) (60 groge tits for Java 3:0608 gr - tots for France, and (*.3 113 000 grömm tira for the U: „ted States, W e, as a resuit of the Mere att Marine Act of 192× 32 vese s of the o!!

type wire tutur der tre na....ee : fract provis

of the act and 10 cargo

of cargo toim

Cumulative gross tonnage of sea-going freighters built since Jan. 1, 1922, at the beginning of each year from 1923 to 1934, inclusive

Source: United States Shipping Board Bureau, Department of Commerce.

MERCHANT TONNAGE BUILT IN PRINCIPAL NATIONS SINCE THE BEGINNING OF 1928

Chart 7 shows the merchant tonnage under construction in five principal maritime nations at the end of each quarter since the beginning of 1928.

At the beginning of 1928 there were under construction in the shipyards of Great Britain about 1,580,000 gross tons of ships while in the United States the tonnage under construction was not over 100,000 gross tons. From the beginning of 1929 to 1931 the merchant tonnage under construction in the United States increased gradually to a peak of 300,000 gross tons on June 30, 1931 but thereafter it declined rapidly until it reached a low of practically zero on July 30, 1933.

The chart also shows the comparatively large amount of construction performed in shipyards of Great Britain for foreign account during recent years Out of 1,580,000 gross tons under construction in British shipyards on January 1, 1928, not over 1,200,000 gross tons were for British account, the balance being for the account of other nations. The green area on the chart shows the extent of British building for the ownership of other nations. The United States has built practically no vessels for foreign account since the World War.

Merchant tonnage, in gross tons of vessels each of 100 gross tons or over, under construction in 5 principal maritime nations since the beginning of 1928 [Source: Lloyd's Register of shipping.]