This chapter examines the vital importance of ports in both historical and contemporary contexts, emphasizing their roles as hubs of global trade and industry. It highlights recent vulnerabilities and geopolitical challenges faced by ports, as well as significant investment initiatives aimed at modernizing infrastructure for future demands. Through case studies of transformative port developments, the chapter illustrates the interconnected themes of re-globalization, digitization, and decarbonization in the evolving landscape of maritime trade.
Ports often make the news when they break: like the bridge collapse that shut down Baltimore's port earlier this year. But every day, ports in cities around the world keep supply chains humming and feed local economies; every year, they help move 80% of the things we buy.
As conflicts between world powers intensify, ports are also the latest battlefields where geopolitical power is won and lost. On today’s episode, Bloomberg’s Brendan Murray tells host Sarah Holder how ports, from Belgium to Peru, are becoming strategic sites for countries to defend their interests. And why trillions of dollars are on the line in order to make these ambitions happen on time.
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