According to result of this paper, shipping companies tend to choose a third party logistics company that is able to provide consulting services that is the core of the administration of distribution. Shipping companies expect that the consulting services would be able to increase the efficiency through utilizing not logistics functions of shipping, unloading, storage, and information but performance indices of logistics activities. Because shipping companies generally regard that third party logistics not only has no expertise but also is small, in order to activate third-party logistics industry, the consulting services should be improved.

Recently leading edge companies use the Supply Chain Management as a competitive weapon to secure and maintain customer loyalty. As a consequency they are concentrating resources on the company’s core business and employing strategic alliances with third-party providers to ensure the company provides its customers’desired logistics service levels at acceptable costs. Under this circumstances this paper surveys the third party logistics as a leading edge logistics industry coping with the progress of the supply chain management. The status and the type of the TPL including the Forwarder are analyzed in the view point of global logistics. Also the development strategy of third party logistics in the future is suggested.