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This chapter assesses the role of conference system from its formation through to 1914. During the nineteenth century a sharp and persistent increase in competition between shipowners over trade and trade routes led to the need for conferences, with the intention of curbing rivalry and retaining customers. Robert G. Greenhill seeks to determine how successful these conferences were at meeting their goals, and finds that though results varied from location to location, overall the consensus amongst shipowners was that it was better for business to be involved in the conference system, rather than not be.

This essay charts the considerable decline of the British shipping industry in the twentieth century. Sarah Palmer demonstrates that growing distance between shipowners and shipbuilders; tremendous decline in liner shipping; unwillingness to innovate; and inconsistent policies established by the government that played significant roles in the decline from the turn of the century’s forty percent global tonnage rates to the meagre three percent reported in 2007.

This essay focuses on business networks in the North of England in the nineteenth century, with particular attention paid to shipowning interests. Graeme J. Milne looks at both regional and national economies to understand the role of the shipowner, and explores the web of interconnect relationships between shipowners, merchants, and other economic figures. He determines the impact of shipowning business culture on wider commercial decision-making. He concludes by affirming that shipping in a historical context can be better understood by studying interconnections in related fields, rather than as an isolated industry.

This chapter studies the collapse of British shipbuilding, in attempt to determine how directly it was linked to the internationalisation of the shipping industry. Lewis Johnman asserts that the lack of response from the British shipbuilding industry to the post Second World War boom in the international industry is a core reason for its decline. To prove this, the chapter considers the globalisation of shipping in post-war context; the second phase of the internationalisation of the world economy; the Norwegian market; the Japanese presence in the industry; and the failure of British Shipbuilding in both international and domestic markets during the period.

This section explores the link between a rise in competence and productivity within the shipping industry, and the dissemination of printed guides for master mariners during the nineteenth century, pamphlets which provided practical information and guides to their duties from ship owners and charterers, with relevant examples of such literature included. Craig demonstrates the solidity of this link, but concludes that the increase in efficiency remains unquantifiable. The section concludes with a short glossary of terms to assist the reader with specific maritime jargon.