As the CEO of a global company I think countries are foregoing opportunities by having cabotage rules.
— Soren Skou
It's easy to talk about digitalising things; it's quite difficult to do in a B2B environment. It's hard to digitalise that complexity.
For Maersk Line, it is never great to compete with somebody who, by definition, can't go bankrupt.
We believe infrastructure is key to economic growth, and we will do what we can to develop infrastructure in India.
Sea freight is by far the cheapest, most economical way to move goods.
If we drive cost down, we will be able to live with low freight rates.
I never predict freight rates; nobody can do that.
When we talk about 'smart transportation,' it is more than moving cargo from A to B. Digitization within transport and logistics means seamless service to our customers, visibility in the supply chain, and driving a more efficient business.
Even if the technology advances, I don't expect we will be allowed to sail around with 400-meter long container ships weighing 200,000 tonnes without any human beings on board. I don't think it will be a driver of efficiency - not in my time.
We need to do whatever we can to defend ourselves against hacking.
Port investments entail a lot of money, and having a partner who can share the risk makes a lot of sense. Often, it makes sense to have a local partner.
As a global carrier, we always have a positive view on investment in infrastructure that supports our industry.
If we don't do our job well, then there's no doubt that big, strong companies like Amazon will look into whether they can do better themselves.
Predicting oil prices is anyone's guess.
We need to digitize from the inside of our business, but at the same time, finding the best solutions will require our industry to partner with companies across a wide range of industries.
Digitization and new technologies are rapidly changing all industries, forcing them to prepare for a tomorrow that is unpredictable. This also applies to the industry of container shipping, ports, and logistics, which largely has been driven by the traditional business models focused on optimizing how you move goods.
Most business problems, you will have an intuitive idea on what to do.
The investments and costs you have to put into digitalising means there will be an incentive for companies to merge.
Investing in ports with partners is a very common model for us.
What drives the attractiveness of a trans-shipment hub are really three things. Location, location, location is very helpful. But so is productivity - a stable labor force and getting ships in and out as quickly as possible. And then, getting costs as low as possible will drive carrier behavior.
If you have a business that isn't growing the top line, it's very hard to deliver attractive returns to shareholders.
Our priority has always been to have the lowest cost so we can be comfortable with weak freight rates. A big part of having the lowest cost is maintaining the largest network, and this means growing market share.
By using big data, it will also be possible to predict adverse weather conditions, rerouting ships to avoid delays, and monitor fuel data, thereby allowing companies to optimize their supply chains and the way they drive their business.
