During the 19th century, when British trade with the rest of world was growing rapidly, the high loss of ships being experienced annually as a result of poor maintenance and overloading created a serious cause for concern. The condition of ships in some instances gave rise to them being referred to as ‘coffin ships.'
The UK economy is the seventh largest in the world and domestic UK ports play a vital role in the UK economy. UK ports are amongst the most competitive and efficient in the world, they handle over 95% of UK imports and exports and in 2008, the value of trade through British ports was around £340 billion. Although the global recession during 2009 and 2010 has had an impact on the amount of traffic through ports in the UK, domestic ports and shipping still make a sizeable contribution to the UK economy.
Shipping Guides Limited
Reigate Hill House
28 Reigate Hill
Reigate, Surrey
RH2 9NG
United Kingdom