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China Ocean Shipping Company, Limited, formerly China Ocean Shipping (Group) Company, commonly known for its abbreviated name COSCO Group, or simply, COSCO, is a former
Chinese Government owned
shipping
Freight transport, also referred as ''Freight Forwarding'', is the physical process of transporting Commodity, commodities and merchandise goods and cargo. The term shipping originally referred to transport by sea but in American English, it h ...
and
logistics
Logistics is generally the detailed organization and implementation of a complex operation. In a general business sense, logistics manages the flow of goods between the point of origin and the point of consumption to meet the requirements of ...
services supplier company. It is one of the major
holding company
A holding company is a company whose primary business is holding a controlling interest in the securities of other companies. A holding company usually does not produce goods or services itself. Its purpose is to own shares of other companies ...
for
China COSCO Shipping
China COSCO Shipping Corporation Limited, abbreviated as COSCO Shipping, is a Chinese state-owned multinational conglomerate headquartered in Shanghai. The group is focused on marine transportation services. COSCO Shipping was established in J ...
. China COSCO Shipping itself is formed by a merger of COSCO Group and
China Shipping Group
China Shipping Group Company, Limited, formerly China Shipping (Group) Company, is a former Chinese state-owned shipping conglomerate. It is now one of the intermediate holding companies for another Chinese state-owned conglomerate, China COSCO S ...
as one conglomerate, by a creation of a new common parent company of the two groups.
COSCO headquarters is in Ocean Plaza in the
Xicheng District
Xicheng District () is a district of Beijing. Xicheng District spans , covering the western half of the old city (largely inside the 2nd Ring Road - the eastern half is Dongcheng District, Beijing, Dongcheng District), and has 706,691 inhabitant ...
in
Beijing
}
Beijing ( ; ; ), alternatively romanized as Peking ( ), is the capital of the People's Republic of China. It is the center of power and development of the country. Beijing is the world's most populous national capital city, with over 21 ...
. It owns 1114 ships, including 365 dry bulk vessels, a container fleet with a capacity of , and a tanker fleet of 120 vessels. The fleet calls at over a thousand ports worldwide. It ranks among the largest in both number of
container ships and aggregate container volume in the world. In 2012, it was among China's top 15 brands.
It was the largest dry bulk carrier in China and one of the largest dry bulk shipping operators worldwide. In addition, the Group is the largest liner carrier in China.
History
China Ocean Shipping Company (1961–1993)
China Ocean Shipping Company, or COSCO in short, was founded in 1961 as a Chinese
government agency
A government or state agency, sometimes an appointed commission, is a permanent or semi-permanent organization in the machinery of government that is responsible for the oversight and administration of specific functions, such as an administrati ...
. In the same year, a subsidiary was formed in Guangzhou, Guangdong Province. The Guangzhou subsidiary purchased a British vessel and renamed it as ''Guanghua'' (). ''Guanghua'' made its maiden voyage to Jakarta for the People's Republic of China in April 1961.
After US resumed
the relation with China in the 1970s, China Ocean Shipping Company signed an agreement with American company
Lykes Brothers Steamship Company
Lykes Bros. Steamship Co., also called Lykes Lines, was a cargo shipping company acting from the beginning of the 20th century to 2005 having its main business in the trade to and from the United States.
History
In 1898 the sons of Dr. Howell Tys ...
in 1979. The agreement opens the commercial sea routes between the United States and the People's Republic of China. In the same year, COSCO became the Chinese side representative to collaborate with
International Telephone and Telegraph
ITT Inc., formerly ITT Corporation, is an American worldwide manufacturing company based in Stamford, Connecticut. The company produces specialty components for the aerospace, transportation, energy and industrial markets. ITT's three businesses ...
on repairing the communication facilities in the coastal cities of China.
In 1981, COSCO won a contract from the Pakistani Government owned National Tanker Company of Pakistan, for crude oil transport.
China Ocean Shipping (Group) Company (1993–2015)
The company became a
holding company
A holding company is a company whose primary business is holding a controlling interest in the securities of other companies. A holding company usually does not produce goods or services itself. Its purpose is to own shares of other companies ...
and renamed as China Ocean Shipping (Group) Company in 1993.
Two other government owned companies, China Marine Bunker Supply Company (
Chimbusco in short) and China Road Transport Company, which engaged in oil tanker and road transport businesses respectively, became the subsidiaries of the group in 1988 and 1992
[ respectively. China Road Transport Company was renamed into COSCO Logistics in 2001 (now part of COSCO Shipping Logistics). As of 2003, COSCO Logistics engaged in shipping agency, freight forwarding, third party logistics and supporting services.] While Chimbusco became a joint venture with PetroChina
PetroChina Company Limited () is a Chinese oil and gas company and is the listed arm of state-owned China National Petroleum Corporation (CNPC), headquartered in Dongcheng District, Beijing. The company is currently Asia's largest oil and gas pr ...
since 2003.
COSCO has a Hong Kong division which the division acquired a HK-listed company Shun Shing Holdings
COSCO Shipping International (Hong Kong) Co., Ltd., stylized as COSCO SHIPPING International, and formerly COSCO International Holdings Limited, is a Hong Kong listed company and an indirect subsidiary of COSCO Shipping. It engages in ship trading ...
in February 1997. Hong Kong was a British colony until June 30, 1997, and has been a special administrative region of China
The special administrative regions (SAR) of the People's Republic of China are one of the provincial-level administrative divisions of the People's Republic of China directly under the control of its Central People's Government (State Co ...
with a separate jurisdiction system since July 1. Another subsidiary of COSCO HK at that time,[ ]COSCO Pacific
COSCO Shipping Ports Limited, stylized as COSCO SHIPPING Ports is a Hong Kong listed company and investor in ports. The company is formerly known as COSCO Pacific Limited and was an indirect subsidiary of China Ocean Shipping (Group) Company (COSCO ...
, was a HK-listed company since 1994. COSCO Pacific has a joint venture with Hongkong International Terminals
Hongkong International Terminals Limited (HIT) () is one of several key container port operators in the Port of Hong Kong owned by Hutchison Port Holdings, which is the largest port operator in Hong Kong and the world.
HIT operates 12 berths i ...
Limited, which operates a terminal in Kwai Tsing Container Terminals
Kwai Tsing Container Terminals is the main port facilities in the reclamation along Rambler Channel between Kwai Chung and Tsing Yi Island, Hong Kong. It evolved from four berths of Kwai Chung Container Port () completed in the 1970s. It later ...
, Hong Kong since 1991. COSCO Pacific acquired 49% stake of COSCO Logistics from the parent company in 2003. COSCO retained the remaining 51%.[ COSCO Pacific also owned 20% stake of Hong Kong-based ]Chong Hing Bank
Chong Hing Bank is a bank founded in Hong Kong in 1948. It is headquartered in Central, while the back offices are located in Western District and Mong Kok. It was owned by the Liu family of Hong Kong until it was acquired by the Chinese state- ...
from 1997 to 2007. In 2007 the stake was sold to the parent company, COSCO HK.
In 1995, another subsidiary, COSCO Corporation (Singapore) Limited, became a listed company in Singapore Exchange. The company was a component of Straits Times Index
The Straits Times Index (abbreviation: STI) is a capitalisation-weighted measurement stock market index that is regarded as the benchmark index for the stock market in Singapore. It tracks the performance of the top 30 companies that are listed ...
until 2010.
COSCO also acquired a Shanghai
Shanghai (; , , Standard Mandarin pronunciation: ) is one of the four direct-administered municipalities of the People's Republic of China (PRC). The city is located on the southern estuary of the Yangtze River, with the Huangpu River flow ...
-listed company in 1997 as a vehicle of backdoor listing
A reverse takeover (RTO), reverse merger, or reverse IPO is the acquisition of a public company by a private company so that the private company can bypass the lengthy and complex process of going public. Sometimes, conversely, the public compa ...
. It became COSCO Development, which engaged in real estate. The direct parent company of COSCO Development was sold in 2005, thus COSCO Development was no longer part of the COSCO Group. Also in 2005, COSCO Group acquired a company from COSCO Development. That company was the operator of Boao Forum for Asia
The Boao Forum for Asia (BFA; ), initiated by 25 Asian countries and Australia (increased to 28 in 2006), is a non-profit organisation that hosts high-level forums for leaders from government, business and academia in Asia and other continents to ...
.[
In 2002, another subsidiary, COSCO Shipping Co., Ltd., became a listed company in Shanghai.
In 2004, COSCO formed a joint venture with fellow ]Central Government
A central government is the government that is a controlling power over a unitary state. Another distinct but sovereign political entity is a federal government, which may have distinct powers at various levels of government, authorized or dele ...
owned Ansteel Group
Anshan Iron and Steel Group Corporation (Ansteel Group in short; less popularly Angang Group) is a Chinese state-owned steel maker. The corporation was under the supervision of State-owned Assets Supervision and Administration Commission of the S ...
(''Angang'' Group).
In 2005, the flagship subsidiary of COSCO, China COSCO Holdings
China COSCO Shipping Corporation Limited, abbreviated as COSCO Shipping, is a Chinese state-owned Multinational corporation, multinational Conglomerate (company), conglomerate headquartered in Shanghai. The group is focused on marine transportat ...
, became a listed company. The A share of China COSCO Holdings was listed in Shanghai since 2007.
Mergers
In 2005, a smaller Central Government owned company, China Ocean Shipping Tally (known as China Tally
China, officially the People's Republic of China (PRC), is a country in East Asia. It is the world's most populous country, with a population exceeding 1.4 billion, slightly ahead of India. China spans the equivalent of five time zones and ...
in short), was merged into COSCO Group.
In 2008, China COSCO Holdings was part of Financial Times Global 500 The FT Global 500 is an annual snapshot of the world's largest companies to show how corporate fortunes have changed in the past year, highlighting relative performance of countries and sectors. The companies are ranked by market capitalization. The ...
for the first time.
By 2015, after more than 5 decades, COSCO Group expanded into one of the major shipping company of the country. It also had a few listed subsidiaries: COSCO Pacific, COSCO International Holdings
COSCO Shipping International (Hong Kong) Co., Ltd., stylized as COSCO SHIPPING International, and formerly COSCO International Holdings Limited, is a Hong Kong listed company and an indirect subsidiary of COSCO Shipping. It engages in ship tradin ...
, China COSCO Holdings
China COSCO Shipping Corporation Limited, abbreviated as COSCO Shipping, is a Chinese state-owned Multinational corporation, multinational Conglomerate (company), conglomerate headquartered in Shanghai. The group is focused on marine transportat ...
, China International Marine Containers, etc., . Real estate developer, Sino-Ocean Group
Sino-Ocean Group Holding Limited is an investment holding company that engages in the property investment and development activities in the People's Republic of China. The company develops real estate projects such as mid to high-end residential p ...
, was an associate company of COSCO until 2010.
In December 2015, COSCO Group merged with fellow Chinese Government owned China Shipping Group
China Shipping Group Company, Limited, formerly China Shipping (Group) Company, is a former Chinese state-owned shipping conglomerate. It is now one of the intermediate holding companies for another Chinese state-owned conglomerate, China COSCO S ...
to form China COSCO Shipping. COSCO Group was retained as an intermediate holding company
A holding company is a company whose primary business is holding a controlling interest in the securities of other companies. A holding company usually does not produce goods or services itself. Its purpose is to own shares of other companies ...
.
In December 2017, COSCO Group (China Ocean Shipping (Group) Company) was re-incorporated from "An industrial enterprise owned by the whole people" to simply a limited company
In a limited company, the liability of members or subscribers of the company is limited to what they have invested or guaranteed to the company. Limited companies may be limited by Share (finance), shares or by guarantee. In a company limited by ...
. The name of the company, also changed to China Ocean Shipping Company, Limited ().
Subsidiaries
COSCO contains several listed companies and has more than 300 subsidiaries
A subsidiary, subsidiary company or daughter company is a company owned or controlled by another company, which is called the parent company or holding company. Two or more subsidiaries that either belong to the same parent company or having a sa ...
locally and abroad, providing services in freight forwarding
A freight forwarder, or forwarding agent, is a person or company who, for a fee organizes shipments for individuals or corporations to get goods from the manufacturer or producer to a market, customer or final point of distribution. , ship building, ship repair, terminal operation, container manufacturing, trade, financing, real estate
Real estate is property consisting of land and the buildings on it, along with its natural resources such as crops, minerals or water; immovable property of this nature; an interest vested in this (also) an item of real property, (more general ...
, and information technology
Information technology (IT) is the use of computers to create, process, store, retrieve, and exchange all kinds of data . and information. IT forms part of information and communications technology (ICT). An information technology system (I ...
.
On the eve of 2015 merger, COSCO Group has a few listed companies
A public company is a company whose ownership is organized via shares of stock which are intended to be freely traded on a stock exchange or in over-the-counter markets. A public (publicly traded) company can be listed on a stock exchange (l ...
:
* China COSCO Holdings
China COSCO Shipping Corporation Limited, abbreviated as COSCO Shipping, is a Chinese state-owned Multinational corporation, multinational Conglomerate (company), conglomerate headquartered in Shanghai. The group is focused on marine transportat ...
(SEHK: 1919; SSE: 601919) - flagship listed subsidiary, also known as "China COSCO" or "COSCO Holdings"
** COSCO Pacific ( SEHK: 1199) - port operator and investor. Significantly (43.63%) owned by China COSCO Holdings as of 31 December 2015
* COSCO International (SEHK: 517)[
* COSCO Shipping Co., Ltd. (SSE:600428) - engaged in specialized carriers. COSCO owned 50.58% shares directly.
* COSCO Corporation (Singapore) ( SGX:F83)
* Cosco SHIPPING Lines (Japan)
Moreover, China International Marine Containers is an associate company of the group, which COSCO indirectly owned 22.77% shares of that listed company as of December 2015. The stake was owned by COSCO Pacific until 2013.
As of 2000, COSCO also owned 30% stake of ]China Cargo Airlines
China Cargo Airlines () sometimes as abbreviated 中货航 (in English as ''CCA'') is a cargo airline with its head office on Hongqiao International Airport in Shanghai, People's Republic of China. It is China's first all-cargo airline operating ...
.
COSCO also had an unlisted business unit in Hong Kong, which was known as COSCO (Hong Kong) Group Limited. COSCO (H.K.) Group was the direct parent company of COSCO Pacific (valid until December 2004) and COSCO International. COSCO (H.K.) Group bought the 20% stake of Chong Hing Bank
Chong Hing Bank is a bank founded in Hong Kong in 1948. It is headquartered in Central, while the back offices are located in Western District and Mong Kok. It was owned by the Liu family of Hong Kong until it was acquired by the Chinese state- ...
and the entire stake of Shun Shing Construction from COSCO Pacific
COSCO Shipping Ports Limited, stylized as COSCO SHIPPING Ports is a Hong Kong listed company and investor in ports. The company is formerly known as COSCO Pacific Limited and was an indirect subsidiary of China Ocean Shipping (Group) Company (COSCO ...
[ and COSCO International respectively in 2007.
]
Controversies
In 1991 COSCO was asked by the US Federal Maritime Commission
The United States Federal Maritime Commission (FMC) is an independent federal agency based in Washington, D.C. that is responsible for the regulation of oceanborne international transportation of the U.S. It is chaired by Daniel B. Maffei.
His ...
(FMC) to submit information regarding Chinese Government restricting U.S.-flag carriers on doing business in China. However, COSCO asked FMC to drop its probe instead. FMC also investigated COSCO for its pricing behavior in 1997, but stating there is not enough evidence to launch a formal probe on alleged under-pricing its service to eliminate competitor.
In August 1993, COSCO's ship ''Yinhe'', was anchored off the coast of Oman
Oman ( ; ar, عُمَان ' ), officially the Sultanate of Oman ( ar, سلْطنةُ عُمان ), is an Arabian country located in southwestern Asia. It is situated on the southeastern coast of the Arabian Peninsula, and spans the mouth of t ...
. US government alleged that the ship carried material exported to Iran, which could be used to make chemical weapons. COSCO claimed that the ship only contained "paper goods, hardware and machine parts".
In 1997, Dianne Feinstein
Dianne Goldman Berman Feinstein ( ; born Dianne Emiel Goldman; June 22, 1933) is an American politician who serves as the senior United States senator from California, a seat she has held since 1992. A member of the Democratic Party, she was ...
and Barbara Boxer
Barbara Sue Boxer (née Levy; born November 11, 1940) is an American politician and lobbyist who served in the United States Senate, representing California from 1993 to 2017. A member of the Democratic Party, she previously served as the U.S. ...
, United States senators from California, had asked the Clinton administration
Bill Clinton's tenure as the 42nd president of the United States began with his first inauguration on January 20, 1993, and ended on January 20, 2001. Clinton, a Democrat from Arkansas, took office following a decisive election victory over Re ...
to investigate COSCO's leasing on a former naval base in Long Beach. The site was developed into a container port terminal, Pacific Container Terminal. However, continued controversy and opposition by Republican lawmakers caused cancellation of the lease, and the new cargo terminal, which was in fact built by the Long Beach Harbor Department ( Port of Long Beach), was leased to Hanjin Shipping
Hanjin Shipping Co., Ltd. was a South Korean integrated logistics and container transport company. Prior to its liquidation, Hanjin Shipping was South Korea's largest container line and one of the world's top ten container carriers in terms of ca ...
, a South Korean firm.
During the 2022 Russian invasion of Ukraine
On 24 February 2022, in a major escalation of the Russo-Ukrainian War, which began in 2014. The invasion has resulted in tens of thousands of deaths on both sides. It has caused Europe's largest refugee crisis since World War II. An ...
, most shipping companies halted all container shipping to Russia, except for basic food products, medicine and humanitarian aid. The exception is COSCO which continues to ship to Russia, and was the largest shipping company to do so.
Incidents and accidents
2009 Norway oil spill
On 31 July 2009, the Panama
Panama ( , ; es, link=no, Panamá ), officially the Republic of Panama ( es, República de Panamá), is a transcontinental country spanning the southern part of North America and the northern part of South America. It is bordered by Cos ...
-flagged bulk carrier
A bulk carrier or bulker is a merchant ship specially designed to transport unpackaged bulk cargo — such as grains, coal, ore, steel coils, and cement — in its cargo holds. Since the first specialized bulk carrier was built in 1852, econom ...
, ''Full City
''Full City'' is a Panama-flagged bulk carrier made infamous by running aground after an engine failure during a storm at the island of Saastein (Såstein) outside Langesund, Telemark, Norway, spilling 700 tons of Heavy fuel oil, heavy bunker fu ...
'', operated by COSCO Group's HK division, experienced engine failure and ran aground near Langesund, Telemark
Telemark is a traditional region, a former county, and a current electoral district in southern Norway. In 2020, Telemark merged with the former county of Vestfold to form the county of Vestfold og Telemark. Telemark borders the traditional ...
, Norway
Norway, officially the Kingdom of Norway, is a Nordic country in Northern Europe, the mainland territory of which comprises the western and northernmost portion of the Scandinavian Peninsula. The remote Arctic island of Jan Mayen and t ...
, during a storm, spilling 200 tons of heavy bunker fuel oil in an ecologically and environmentally sensitive wildlife area.
See also
* COSCO fleet lists
COSCO
China Ocean Shipping Company, Limited, formerly China Ocean Shipping (Group) Company, commonly known for its abbreviated name COSCO Group, or simply, COSCO, is a former Chinese Government owned shipping and logistics services supplier ...
* List of oil spills
* Shipping industry of China
*
* Chipolbrok
Footnotes
References
;general
*
;specific
External links
{{DEFAULTSORT:Cosco
Transport companies established in 1961
Conglomerate companies of China
Crane manufacturers
Government-owned companies of China
Shipping companies of China
Port operating companies
Chinese brands
Xicheng District
Multinational companies headquartered in China
Companies based in Beijing
Chinese companies established in 1961