During the last decade the world had experienced oil crisis twice: the first one was the fourfold jump in oil prices in 1973 and 1974, the second one came in 1979 with 2.6 times price hike. The current crude oil prices stand around the level of 30 a barrel. The first reaction came quick, with reduced oil consumption and a general decline in economic activity. Furthermore, the second oil crisis has brought about tremendous and varied impacts upon the shipping industry, which is now undergoing an adaptation process to the changing environments. This article is divided into five chapters: chapter I is the introduction on the subject under examination; chapter II is devoted to the trends of the seaborne trade cargoes after the oil crisis; chapter III reveals the impact of the oil price hike on ships and their desion; chapter IV deals with the challenges shipping enterprises face in terms fo economic modus operandi and new international political environments; chapter V sets forth conclusion.

This article is divided into five chapters: chapter I is the introduction on the subject under examination; chapter II is devoted to explaining the phenomenon of concentration of capital. The writer has attempted here to show the degree of capital concentration in Korean shipping in 1974 and 1979 and made a comparison with that of the selected leading maritime nations; chapter III has been devoted to the economies of scale and the optimum size of shipping firm, firstly introducing empirical studies of the British shipping firms, which had been conducted by American and British economists in the early 1960's, and secondly made a survey of Korean shipping activity during 1974-1979 in terms of economies of scale; chapter IV deals with the reasons of concentration of shipping in light of recent advances of ship technology; chapter V sets forth conclusion.

The writer has attempted in the present article first to investiqate whether shipping industry is poor countries' business more favourable to them, compared to wealthy nations in terms of comparative cost of operation and to analyse how can developing conntries afford to maintain a modern fleet; secondly to examine the economic aspect of the situation created by the UNCTAD V held in May this year, at which passed a resolution demanding "the right of all countries to an equitable participation in the carriage of cargoes generated by their own trade"; and thirdly to adduce conclusions. The article contains six chapters; chapter I is the introduction on the subject under examination; chapter II provides background information on the structure of the industry and of the operating cost of ship; chapter III addresses itself to the legal backgrounds of ensuring free transfer of resources among nations and free competition of shipping; chapter IV deals with the recent development of shipping nationalism of developing countries at the UNCTAD; chapter V discusses division of labour in shipping and in particular the survival mechanism of high-cost countries; and chapter Ⅵ sets forth conclusion.onclusion.