The global freight transport industry is composed of a series of key actors:
- Maritime shipping lines. They control long distance segments of the global freight distribution system by linking major markets (maritime ranges). A highly capital intensive industry with ship assets that are deployed along a network configuration involving a sequence of ports of call.
- Port terminal operators. They control through ownership or lease important intermodal infrastructures (terminals) within the world’s largest container ports. Have strong linkages with maritime shipping companies since they directly handle their cargo operations.
- Port authorities. They manage and plan port infrastructures usually as a public landlord that lease terminals to private operators. They act as important intermediaries for regional distribution by developing and improving hinterland connectivity.
- Commercial real estate developers. Private companies that develop logistics zones, often in coordination with intermodal terminals. They can build to lease on the market or build to the specification of a customer. Several manage a real estate portfolio of distribution centers.
- Maritime lock and canal operators. They operate strategic passages along global and national maritime routes by charging tools related to type of ship and cargo. The Panama Canal, the Suez Canal, and the St. Lawrence Seaway are salient examples.
- Truck carriers. They operate vast and diverse road assets, servicing the road segments of supply chains, focusing on short and medium hauls. Some operate on a own-account basis where they are branches of corporation they carry cargo for. The majority are for-hire, placing their services on a market through contracts.
- Rail and rail terminal operators. They are inland freight carriers transporting a wide array of raw materials and commodities over a rail network that they own or lease. Terminal operators are responsible for the transshipments between rail and road, particularly for containerized freight.
- Third party logistics providers. They provide important managerial and organizational skills within supply chains by acting as brokers between customers and transport service providers. Some own and operate transport assets such as trucks, cargo planes and distribution centers.
- Air freight carriers. They operate air cargo assets for the rapid distribution of high added value freight. They decide of their network configuration and the airports to be serviced.
- Freight forwarders. They perform tasks such as packaging, labeling and the consolidation of shipments on behalf of their customers. Many operate distribution centers and can subcontract to third party logistics service providers such as shipping lines, rail carriers and truck carriers.