Modern containerization was born with the concept of inter modalism, the efficient transfer between modes of transportation (i.e., truck, train, ship). When international standards for containers were agreed on in 1961, the ground was laid not only for the dramatic reduction of import and export costs, but for the container industry and its contribution to global trade. Exponential, explosive growth in each soon followed. Today, the ubiquity of containerization over bulk is unchallenged. In “The Containerization of Commodities,” Jean-Paul Rodrigue and Theo Notte boom argue that despite the current saturation of containerization in some commodities, opportunities for growth still remain in niche markets. In fact, the global ubiquity of containerization has, they contend, created more opportunity for containerization by virtue of factors that range from economies of scale to the avail- ability of empty containers. Clearly, the niche is the key, and areas of current trade imbalances are cited by Rodrigue and Notteboom as obvious opportunities. Nevertheless, they add a cautionary note: Factors relating to complex logistics and ranging from the load units of available containers to transloading and terminal issues must be considered. While Rodrigue and Notteboom suggest there is little competition between existing global containerized and bulk commodity chains, Bloomberg News has re- ported a “decline in the fortunes of dry-bulk and tanker operators.” Bloomberg also notes a concomitant surge in some areas of containerization.

1. In responding to the summary of the Rodrigue/Notteboom analysis of global containerized and bulk chains, the author implies that

(A) the expected and dramatic reduction of import and export costs never occurred.
(B) Rodrigue and Notteboom are less interested in this issue than in the issue of niche markets.
(C) some market trends may suggest a counterargument to the Rodrigue/ Notteboom claim.
(D) most shipping operators now accept that the containerization market is saturated.
(E) the ubiquity of containerization over bulk is, in fact, challenged after all.



2. Based on passage information, which of the following statements is LEAST likely to be true?

(A) The concept of inter modalism is the basis of efficient containerization.
(B) Transloading and terminal issues may prove barriers to efficient containerization.
(C) The availability of empty containers and other factors may facilitate the growth of the containerization market.
(D) Containerization is widespread and has saturated some commodities.
(E) Current market trends suggest great competition between existing global containerized and bulk commodity chains.



3. It can be inferred that

(A) bulk transfer will eventually disappear entirely.
(B) contain erization often competes with bulk.
(C) containerization has a 100% saturation.
(D) some commodities cannot easily be containerized.
(E) dry-bulk and tanker operators continue to flourish.