A container load center with a developing hinterland : A case study of Hong Kong

The development of the Hong Kong container port in a regional context is examined in the light of Hayuth's five-stage load-center model. The port-hinterland relationship between Hong Kong and China is unique as the hub and its hinterland belonged to two economies at different development levels and of different institutional settings. The development gap in containerization resulted in the inter-port competition stage being missed when Hong Kong became a load center. This case deviated further from Hayuth's model, as the challenges to the center from peripheral ports is largely an outcome of the penetration of the hub operators into other ports in China.