Evolvement of Rank-Size Distribution of Regional Container Ports: Case Study of Yangtze River Delta of China

Regional container port operation plays a crucial role in international trade and economic development. Amid fierce competition, orderly running of regional ports is vital. The rank-size status of the regional container ports indicates the orderliness and distribution concentration of port system development and is the focus of port administrations and port operators. This paper introduces the rank-size distribution rule into studies on the development of regional container port systems and proves that Zipf’s three-parameter model can effectively describe the evolvement of the rank-size system of regional container ports, taking the container port group in the Yangtze River Delta as an example. This paper finds that the regional container ports tend to become concentrated in high ranks during evolvement. Moreover, the macroeconomic environment has a great impact on the distribution concentration of regional container ports. Economic procyclicality can accelerate port concentration. On the other hand, economic counter-cyclicality will induce port decentralization. The results of this paper are conducive to port administrations and enterprises to gain a more comprehensive understanding of the development of regional container ports and to formulate the proper development plans. The results are also helpful for government departments to well design the development strategies for port and shipping development and better steer the benign development of regional container port groups.