Suomen ja Venäjän välinen kuorma-autoliikenne 2000-luvulla: nykytilanne ja tulevaisuus

Suomen ja Venäjän välinen kuorma-autoliikenne on jatkuvassa käymistilassa Venäjän tullin ja muiden viranomaisten ongelmallisten uusien määräysten takia. Ongelmista huolimatta Venäjän talouteen ja ulkomaankaupan kuljetuksiin liittyy suuria mahdollisuuksia, joita pyrkivät hyödyntämään Suomen lisäksi myös muut yhteisen rajan Venäjän kanssa jakavat maat. Suomalaisten kuljetusliikkeiden osuus kuljetusmarkkinoista on koko ajan pienentynyt vuodesta 1993 lähtien, venäläisten ottaessa markkinat vähitellen haltuunsa. Tutkimuksen tarkoituksena oli selvittää pahimmat Suomen ja Venäjän väliseen liikenteeseen liittyvät ongelmat ja muodostaa toimenpide-ehdotuksia nykytilanteen parantamiseksi. Tutkimuksessa pyrittiin myös visioimaan suomalaisten kuljetusyritysten ja Suomen liikennekäytävän tulevaisuutta Venäjän ulkomaankaupan kuljetuksissa. Tietoa on kerätty suomalaisille kuljetusyhtiöille suunnatulla kyselyllä, asiantuntijoiden haastatteluilla sekä keräämällä havaintoja kuorma-autoyhdistelmän kyydissä reitillä Suomi – Pietari – Moskova. Tutkimuksen perusteella pahimmat ongelmat liittyvät rajanylitykseen. Rajanylitystä voidaan helpottaa kehittämällä rajanylityspaikkojen infrastruktuuria ja tievarsipalveluita, parantamalla rajatilannetiedottamista ja kuljetusten suunnittelua, lisäämällä viranomaisyhteistyötä sekä hyödyntämällä uuden Imatran kansainvälisen rajanylityspaikan tuomia mahdollisuuksia.

Integraation vaikutus Euroopan unionin jäsenmaiden ulkomaankauppavirtoihin

Työn tavoitteena on selvittää Euroopan unionin integraation vaikutusta jäsenmaiden ulkomaankauppaan vuosien 1995 ja 2001 välillä. Pääpaino on unionin sisäkaupan tutkimuksessa, Euroopan unionin ulkopuolisiin maihin suuntautuvan kaupan tarkastelussa tutkitaan kauppaa muiden teollistuneiden maiden ja kehitysmaiden kanssa. Työ on jakautunut teoreettiseen osaan ja empiiriseen osaan. Teoreettisessa osassa esitellään ulkomaankaupan taloustieteellinen perusta sekä kauppapolitiikan vaikutus kaupankäyntiin. Empiirisessä osassa tutkitaan tilastollisin menetelmin Euroopan unionin jäsenmaiden ulkomaankauppavirtoja. Johtopäätöksissä empiirisiä tuloksia verrataan muodostettuihin hypoteeseihin. Tutkimustulosten perusteella Euroopan unionin integraatiolla ei näytä olevan suurta vaikutusta unionin sisäkauppaan. Muun maailman kaupassa kehitys on ollut huomattavasti suurempaa. Parhaiten unionin sisäkauppaa selittää gravitaatiomalli eli kauppa riippuu voimakkaasti maiden taloudellisista vetovoimista ja niiden maantieteellisestä ja kulttuurillisesta etäisyydestä. Myös ydin-periferiamallin merkitys näyttää kasvaneen. Ulkokaupassa kauppapolitiikan rajoittava vaikutus on vähentynyt erityisesti kehitysmaiden kanssa käydyssä kaupassa.

Tullin tuonnin palvelujen epäyhtenäisten käytäntöjen analysointi

Työn tarkoituksena on analysoida Tulli tuonnin palveluissa esiintyviä epäyhtenäi siä käytäntöjä Tullihallituksen Ulkomaankauppaosaston asiakas- ja luotonhallin tayksikölle. Tutkimuksen pohjustamiseksi työssä on ensin määritelty palvelu, asiakashallinta ja Customer Relationship Management (CRM) kirjallisuuden pe rusteella sekä tutkimuksessa käytetty SERVQUAL-työkalu ja kuiluanalyysimalli. Näiden perusteella on luotu tutkimuksessa käytetty kysely. Kyselyssä kysyttiin missä tuonnin palveluissa epäyhtenäisiä käytäntöjä on havait tu, mistä ne johtuvat ja mandollisia keinoja niiden poistamiseen. SERVQUAL työkalulla tutkittiin koetun palvelun laatua 19 kysymyksellä Tullin tuonnin palve luiden odotuksista ja kokemuksista. Kyselyn tuloksista havaittiin Tullin tuonnin palveluissa olevan koetun palvelun kuilu eli odotettu palvelu ei ole vastannut ko kemuksia. Myös organisaatiosta johtuvia kuiluja havaittiin Tullin työntekijöille osoitetussa kyselyssä.

EU:n ja Kiinan välisen kaupan kehitys

Työmme tavoitteena on analysoida Kiinan ja EU:n keskinäisen kaupan kasvua viimeisinä vuosikymmeninä ja lähitulevaisuudessa. Lisäksi tutkimme kauppaa ja sen rakennetta molemmista näkökulmista, jotta voisimme havaita molemmille osapuolille saavutettavat hyödyt, haitat ja tulevaisuuden mahdollisuudet. Työssä pyrittiin käyttämään lähteenä aiheeseen liittyvää kirjallisuutta ja tuoreita artikkeleita. Maiden välisen kaupan kasvu perustuu suuresti Kiinan talouden uudistusohjelmaan, jonka ansiosta Kiina avautui huomattavasti kansainväliselle liiketoiminnalle. Suhteellisen edun teorian mukaisesti tuotanto alkoi siirtyä Kiinaan yhä enemmän, ja samalla Kiinan talous lähti huimaan kasvuun. Kiina on viime vuosikymmenen aikana noussut EU:n tärkeimmäksi tuontimaaksi, ja tulevaisuudessa Kiinan vienti tulee lisääntymään entisestään. Joidenkin arvioiden mukaan Kiina tulee tulevaisuudessa ottamaan paikan maailman suurimpana talousmaana. Tärkeimmät kahdenkeskeiseen kaupankäyntiin vaikuttavat seikat ovat Kiinan valuutan aliarvostus ja tuontirajoitukset. Kaupan rakenteeseen vaikuttaa merkittävästi Kiina ja EU:n taloudellisten suhteellisten etujen eroavaisuudet.

Combining Advanced Forecasting Methods with System Dynamics - the Case of Finnish Seaports

Seaports play an important part in the wellbeing of a nation. Many nations are highly dependent on foreign trade and most trade is done using sea vessels. This study is part of a larger research project, where a simulation model is required in order to create further analyses on Finnish macro logistical networks. The objective of this study is to create a system dynamic simulation model, which gives an accurate forecast for the development of demand of Finnish seaports up to 2030. The emphasis on this study is to show how it is possible to create a detailed harbor demand System Dynamic model with the help of statistical methods. The used forecasting methods were ARIMA (autoregressive integrated moving average) and regression models. The created simulation model gives a forecast with confidence intervals and allows studying different scenarios. The building process was found to be a useful one and the built model can be expanded to be more detailed. Required capacity for other parts of the Finnish logistical system could easily be included in the model.

Development of Russian Ports in The Gulf of Finland

Russia has been one of the fastest developing economic areas in the world. Based on the GDP, the Russian economy grew evenly since the crisis in 1998 up till 2008. The growth in the gross domestic product has annually been some 5–10%. In 2007, the growth reached 8.1%, which is the highest figure after the 10% growth in 2000. Due to the growth of the economy and wage levels, purchasing power and consumption have been strongly increasing. The growing consumption has especially increased the imports of durables, such as passenger cars, domestic appliances and electronics. The Russian ports and infrastructure have not been able to satisfy the growing needs of exports and imports, which is why quite a large share of Russian foreign trade is going through third countries as transit transports. Finnish ports play a major role in transit transports to and from Russia. About 15% of the total value of Russian imports was transported through Finland in 2008. The economic recession that started in autumn 2008 and continues to date has had an impact on the economic development of Russia. The export income has decreased, mainly due to the reduced world market prices of energy products (oil and gas) and raw minerals. Investments have been postponed, getting credit is more difficult than before, and the ruble has weakened in relation to the euro and the dollar. The imports are decreasing remarkably, and are not forecast to reach the 2008 volumes even in 2012. The economic crisis is reflected in Finland's transit traffic. The volume of goods transported through Finland to and from Russia has decreased almost in the same proportion as the imports of goods to Russia. The biggest risk threatening the development of the Russian economy over long term is its dependence on export income from oil, gas, metals, minerals and forest products, as well as the trends of the world market prices of these products. Nevertheless, it is expected that the GDP of Russia will start to grow again in the forthcoming years due to the increased demand for energy products and raw minerals in the world. At the same time, it is obvious that the world market prices of these products will go up with the increasing demand. The increased income from exports will lead to a growth of imports, especially those of consumer goods, as the living standard of Russian citizens rises. The forecasts produced by the Russian Government concerning the economic development of Russia up till 2030 also indicate a shift in exported goods from raw materials to processed products, which together with energy products will become the main export goods of Russia. As a consequence, Russia may need export routes through third countries, which can be seen as an opportunity for increased transit transports through the ports of Finland. The ports competing with the ports of Finland for Russian foreign trade traffic are the Russian Baltic Sea ports and the ports of the Baltic countries. The strongest competitors are the Baltic Sea ports handling containers. On the Russian Baltic Sea, these ports include Saint Petersburg, Kaliningrad and, in the near future, the ports of Ust-Luga and possibly Vyborg. There are plans to develop Ust-Luga and Vyborg as modern container ports, which would become serious competitors to the Finnish ports. Russia is aiming to redirect as large a share as possible of foreign trade traffic to its own ports. The ports of Russia and the infrastructure associated with them are under constant development. On the other hand, the logistic capacity of Russia is not able to satisfy the continually growing needs of the Russian foreign trade. The capacity problem is emphasized by a structural incompatibility between the exports and imports in the Russian foreign trade. Russian exports can only use a small part of the containers brought in with imports. Problems are also caused by the difficult ice conditions and narrow waterways leading to the ports. It is predicted that Finland will maintain its position as a transit route for the Russian foreign trade, at least in the near future. The Russian foreign trade is increasing, and Russia will not be able to develop its ports in proportion with the increasing foreign trade. With the development of port capacity, cargo flows through the ports of Russia will grow. Structural changes in transit traffic are already visible. Firms are more and more relocating their production to Russia, for example as regards the assembly of cars and warehousing services. Simultaneously, an increasing part of transit cargoes are sent directly to Russia without unloading and reloading in Finland. New product groups have nevertheless been transported through Finland (textile products and tools), replacing the lost cargos. The global recession that started in autumn 2008 has influenced the volume of Russian imports and, consequently, the transit volumes of Finland, but the recession is not expected to be of long duration, and will thus only have a short-term impact on transit volumes. The Finnish infrastructure and services offered by the logistic chain should also be ready to react to the changes in imported product groups as well as to the change in Russian export products in the future. If the development plans of the Russian economy are realized, export products will be more refined, and the share of energy and raw material products will decrease. The other notable factor to be taken into consideration is the extremely fast-changing business environment in Russia. Operators in the logistic chain should be flexible enough to adapt to all kinds of changes to capitalise on business opportunities offered by the Russian foreign trade for the companies and for the transit volumes of Finnish ports, also in the future.

Muotia, mukavuutta ja mielipiteitä. Kaakeliuuni yhteiskunnallisten muutosten ilmentäjänä keskiajan ja uuden ajan alun Suomessa

Fashion, Comf ort and Conviction is a study investigating the adoption and significance of the ceramic tile stove in medieval and early modern Finland. It presents stove tiles found in archaeological excavations, places the tiles in their cultural contexts and examines them as indicators of various social changes. The early history of the ceramic tile stove goes back to the 12th century in the German-speaking Alpine regions, from where it spread to the Baltic Sea region during the Middle Ages. On the basis of the archaeological finds presented in this study, the introduction of the tile stove in Finland dates to the early 15th century. Its adoption was connected to the increase in foreign trade links and social emulation, the demand for comfort, and innovations in building technology and interior design. Stove tiles also reflect the political and religious convictions of their time and open a fascinating window on everyday life in medieval and early modern Finland.

Jäänmurtopalveluiden kilpailutus palvelua tarjoavan yrityksen näkökulmasta

Jäänmurtajien ja jäänmurtopalveluiden kehittymisen myötä Suomen teollisuus ja ulkomaankauppa on voinut tukeutua ympärivuotisiin merikuljetuksiin. Vuodesta 1889 lähtien, yli sadan vuoden ajan, jäänmurto oli valtion virkamiesten hoitamaa palvelua. Viimeisen seitsemän vuoden aikana jäänmurtajat ja palveluntuotanto on siirtynyt liikelaitoksen kautta valtion omistamalle osakeyhtiölle. Tarkoituksena on ollut monien muiden palveluiden tapaan saada myös jäänmurto kilpailutuksen piiriin. Tämän diplomityön tarkoituksena oli selvittää jäänmurto -liiketoiminnan kannattavuutta kilpailuun mahdollisesti osallistuvien yritysten näkökulmasta. Kannattavuutta selvitettiin kolmen tutkimuskokonaisuuden avulla. Tutkittavat osa-alueet olivat jäänmurron sopimukset, kustannusrakenne sekä muu mahdollinen jäänmurtajalla avovesikaudella suoritettava liiketoiminta. Tutkimus toteutettiin haastattelututkimuksena. Haastateltavina oli sekä jäänmurrossa mukana olevia ja siitä kiinnostuneita varustamoita että muita merenkulun sidosryhmiä, joiden toiminta vaikuttaa liiketoiminnan kannattavuuteen. Lisäksi tehtiin laskelmia kilpailutekijöiden selventämiseksi. Työn tuloksena ei pyritty saamaan ehdotonta tulosta kannattavuudesta, vaan tuloksina esiteltiin yritysten ja sidosryhmien näkemyksiä siitä, miten jäänmurron kilpailutusta voisi kehittää. Erityisesti haluttiin tuoda esille ne seikat, mitkä varustamot näkivät tärkeänä ja mitkä tukisivat heidän osallistumistaan mahdolliseen kilpailuun.

Kansainliiton tilastojulkaisut

Kansainliiton tilastojulkaisujen kokoelmaan kuuluu Kansainliiton julkaisemia tilastosarjoja ja vähäisessä määrin muita julkaisuja vuosilta 1920-1946. Tilastojen aiheina ovat mm. maailmankauppa, maksutase ja valuuttakysymykset. Kokoelmaan kuuluvia sarjoja ovat esimerkiksi Statistical year-book of the League of Nations, Review of world trade ja Memorandum on balance of payments and foreign trade balances. Kokoelmaan kuuluvat sarjat eivät ole täydellisiä. Kansainliitto (engl. League of Nations, ransk. Société des Nations) perustettiin ensimmäisen maailmansodan jälkeen tehtävänään aseistariisunta ja valtioiden välisen yhteistyön edistäminen. Kansainliitto lopetti toimintansa 1946, jolloin sen tehtävät siirtyivät juuri perustetulle YK:lle.

Finnish Critical Industries, Maritime Transport Vulnerabilities and societal Implications

Maritime transports are very essential for Finland as over 80% of the foreign trade in the country is seaborne and possibilities to carry out these transports by are limited. Any disruption in maritime transports has negative consequences to many sectors in the Finnish economy. Maritime transport thus represents critical infrastructure for Finland. This report focuses on the importance of maritime transports on security of supply in Finland and for the so called critical industries in particular. The report summarizes the results of the Work Package 2 of the research project STOCA – “Study of cargo flows in the Gulf of Finland in emergency situations”. The aim of the research was to analyze the cargo flows and infrastructure that are vital for maintaining security of supply in Finland, as well as the consequences of disruptions in the maritime traffic for the Finnish critical industries and for the Finnish society. In the report we give a presentation of the infrastructure and transport routes which are critical for maintaining security of supply in Finland. We discuss import dependency of the critical industries, and the importance of the Gulf of Finland ports for Finland. We assess vulnerabilities associated with the critical material flows of the critical industries, and possibilities for alternative routings in case either one or several of the ports in Finland would be closed. As a concrete example of a transport disruption we analyze the consequences of the Finnish stevedore strike at public ports (4.3.–19.3.2010). The strike stopped approximately 80% of the Finnish foreign trade. As a result of the strike Finnish companies could not export their products and/or import raw materials, components and spare parts, or other essential supplies. We carried out personal interviews with representatives of the companies in Finnish critical industries to find out about the problems caused by the strike, how companies carried out they transports and how they managed to continue their operations during the strike. Discussions with the representatives of the companies gave us very practical insights about companies’ preparedness towards transport disruptions in general. Companies in the modern world are very vulnerable to transport disruptions because companies regardless of industries have tried to improve their performance by optimizing their resources and e.g. by reducing their inventory levels. At the same time they have become more and more dependent on continuous transports. Most companies involved in foreign trade have global operations and global supply chains, so any disruption anywhere in the world can have an impact on the operations of the company causing considerable financial loss. The volcanic eruption in Iceland in April 2010 stopping air traffic in the whole Northern Europe and most recently the earth quake causing a tsunami in Japan in March 2011 are examples of severe disruptions causing considerable negative impacts to companies’ supply chains. Even though the Finnish stevedore strike was a minor disruption compared to the natural catastrophes mentioned above, it showed the companies’ vulnerability to transport disruptions very concretely. The Finnish stevedore strike gave a concrete learning experience of the importance of preventive planning for all Finnish companies: it made them re-think their practical preparedness towards transport risks and how they can continue with their daily operations despite the problems. Many companies realized they need to adapt their long-term countermeasures against transport disruptions. During the strike companies did various actions to secure their supply chains. The companies raised their inventory levels before the strike began, they re-scheduled or postponed their deliveries, shifted customer orders between production plants among their company’s production network or in the extreme case bought finished products from their competitor to fulfil their customers’ order. Our results also show that possibilities to prepare against transport disruptions differ between industries. The Finnish society as a whole is very dependent on imports of energy, various raw materials and other supplies needed by the different industries. For many of the Finnish companies in the export industries and e.g. in energy production maritime transport is the only transport mode the companies can use due to large volumes of materials transported or due to other characteristics of the goods. Therefore maritime transport cannot be replaced by any other transport mode. In addition, a significant amount of transports are concentrated in certain ports. From a security of supply perspective attention should be paid to finding ways to decrease import dependency and ensuring that companies in the critical industries can ensure the continuity of their operations.

Kansainvälisen valuuttarahaston (IMF) julkaisut

International Monetary Fund (IMF) eli Kansainvälinen valuuttarahasto perustettiin v. 1945 valvomaan 187 jäsenmaansa rahoitusjärjestelmiä ja edistämään rahoitusmarkkinoiden vakautta ja kansainvälistä kauppaa. IMF julkaisee kansainvälisiä maksutasetilastoja n. 200 maasta, ulkomaankaupan tilastotietoa, aikasarjoja v. 1948 lähtien ja valtiontalouden rahoitustilastoja sekä maakohtaisia raportteja. Painettuun kokoelmaan kuuluu vuosikertomuksia, kausijulkaisuja, tilastoja ja monografioita. Ne käsittelevät makrotaloutta, taloudellista kehitystä, rahoitusmarkkinoita, kansainvälistä taloutta ja valuuttamarkkinoita. Kokoelmassa on yhteensä n. 4342 nimekettä ja se karttuu jatkuvasti. Kokoelman vanhin julkaisu on vuodelta 1944. Suurin osa kokoelman julkaisuista on ilmestynyt v. 1995 - 2011. Sitä uudempia ei ole enää hankittu painettuina. Kokoelmaan kuuluu erilaisia vuosikirjoja pitkältä ajanjaksolta, kuten Annual report (1948 -), Annual Report on Exchange Arrangements (1990 -), Balance of payments statistics yearbook (1938 - ), Direction of trade statistics yearbook (1958 - ), Government finance statistics yearbook (1952 - ) ja International financial statistics yearbook (1991 - ). Kokoelma sisältää myös kausijulkaisuja kuten Economic review (1951 - ), IMF staff papers (1951 -) ja International financial statistics (1948 -). Kokoelmaan kuuluvat myös elektronisia julkaisuja sisältävät IMF E-Library ja AREAER -tietokannat. AREAR-tietokannassa on Annual Report on Exchange Arrangements -julkaisut sähköisessä muodossa. Tietokannassa on dataa mm. IMF:n jäsenmaiden valuutta- ja kauppajärjestelyistä. IMF E-Library, sisältää elektronisia julkaisuja sekä tilastotietokannat: International financial statistics (IFS), Balance of payments statistics (BOP), Direction of trade statistics (DOT) ja Government finance statistics (GFS). Julkaisuja on yhteensä n. 11 806. Kokoelman uudempaa osaa säilytetään Suomen Pankin kirjaston avokokoelmassa ja vanhempaa varastokokoelmassa. Painetut julkaisut ovat käytettävissä kirjastossa ja lainattavissa lukuun ottamatta tilastojulkaisuja, kausijulkaisuja ja vuosikirjoja. Elektronisia tietokantoja voi käyttää vain organisaation henkilökunta.

Cargo Traffic on the Helsinki-Tallinn Route

The twin-city model has found to increase economical activity and well-being. The similar economical, social and cultural background of Finland and Estonia as well as the EU integration give good preconditions to create a twin-city of Helsinki and Tallinn. The relatively long distance between Helsinki and Tallinn is challenging. Therefore, good transport infrastructure and functioning connections are required to form a twin-city of Helsinki and Tallinn. The connections between these cities can be considered also in broader perspective than only from the viewpoint of the twin-city concept. New markets areas have been emerged in Europe due to collapse of planned economy and integration of Europe. Also the transport routes to the markets are changing. The Hel-sinki-Tallinn sea route can be considered as a fast route to the new markets in the Cen-tral and Eastern Europe. The Helsinki-Tallinn sea route is also a potential route to the Western European markets. This study provides an analysis of transport and cargo flows between Finland and Esto-nia for regional and local planners. The main purpose of the study is to clarify the pre-sent situation of the seaborne cargo flows on the Helsinki-Tallinn route and how the cargo flows will develop in the future. The study focuses on the following thematic enti-ties: the Finnish and Estonian seaborne transport system and cargo flows, the structure and volume of the cargo flows on the Helsinki-Tallinn route, the hinterland cargo flows on the Helsinki-Tallinn route and the transport methods used on the Helsinki-Tallinn route. The study was carried out as a desk research, a statistical analysis and an inter-view study during the spring–autumn 2011. The study reveals that during the period 2002–2010 the volume of the seaborne cargo traffic between Finland and Estonia has increased significantly while the trend of the trade volume between Finland and Estonia has remained nearly constant. This indicates that the route via Estonia is increasingly used in the Finnish foreign trade. Because the ports of Helsinki and Tallinn are the main ports in the cargo traffic between Finland and Estonia, the role of the Helsinki-Tallinn route as a sea leg in the hinterland connections of Finland has increased. The growth of the cargo volume on the Helsinki-Tallinn route was estimated to continue on the annual level of 10 % during the next couple of years. In the long run the growth of the cargo volumes depends on the economical and indus-trial development of the former Eastern European countries. If the IMO’s sulphur regu-lations will come in force, the Helsinki-Tallinn route will become one of the main routes also to the Western European markets, besides of the route via Sweden. The study also shows that the fast and reliable connections year round on the Helsinki-Tallinn route have made it possible for service and logistics companies to reconsider their logistics strategies in a new way in the both side of the Gulf of Finland. Anyway, the ropax concept is seen as the only economical profitable solution on the Helsinki-Tallinn route because cargo and passenger traffic are supporting each other. The trucks (vehicle combinations) will remain the main mode of transport on the Helsinki-Tallinn route because general cargo is the main commodity on the route. IMO’s sulphur regula-tions and the changes in the structure of the Finnish industry may create prerequisites for rail road transport in the hinterland connections of Finland. The twin-city model has found to increase economical activity and well-being. The similar economical, social and cultural background of Finland and Estonia as well as the EU integration give good preconditions to create a twin-city of Helsinki and Tallinn. The relatively long distance between Helsinki and Tallinn is challenging. Therefore, good transport infrastructure and functioning connections are required to form a twin-city of Helsinki and Tallinn. The connections between these cities can be considered also in broader perspective than only from the viewpoint of the twin-city concept. New markets areas have been emerged in Europe due to collapse of planned economy and integration of Europe. Also the transport routes to the markets are changing. The Hel-sinki-Tallinn sea route can be considered as a fast route to the new markets in the Cen-tral and Eastern Europe. The Helsinki-Tallinn sea route is also a potential route to the Western European markets. This study provides an analysis of transport and cargo flows between Finland and Esto-nia for regional and local planners. The main purpose of the study is to clarify the pre-sent situation of the seaborne cargo flows on the Helsinki-Tallinn route and how the cargo flows will develop in the future. The study focuses on the following thematic enti-ties: the Finnish and Estonian seaborne transport system and cargo flows, the structure and volume of the cargo flows on the Helsinki-Tallinn route, the hinterland cargo flows on the Helsinki-Tallinn route and the transport methods used on the Helsinki-Tallinn route. The study was carried out as a desk research, a statistical analysis and an inter-view study during the spring–autumn 2011. The study reveals that during the period 2002–2010 the volume of the seaborne cargo traffic between Finland and Estonia has increased significantly while the trend of the trade volume between Finland and Estonia has remained nearly constant. This indicates that the route via Estonia is increasingly used in the Finnish foreign trade. Because the ports of Helsinki and Tallinn are the main ports in the cargo traffic between Finland and Estonia, the role of the Helsinki-Tallinn route as a sea leg in the hinterland connections of Finland has increased. The growth of the cargo volume on the Helsinki-Tallinn route was estimated to continue on the annual level of 10 % during the next couple of years. In the long run the growth of the cargo volumes depends on the economical and indus-trial development of the former Eastern European countries. If the IMO’s sulphur regu-lations will come in force, the Helsinki-Tallinn route will become one of the main routes also to the Western European markets, besides of the route via Sweden. The study also shows that the fast and reliable connections year round on the Helsinki-Tallinn route have made it possible for service and logistics companies to reconsider their logistics strategies in a new way in the both side of the Gulf of Finland. Anyway, the ropax concept is seen as the only economical profitable solution on the Helsinki-Tallinn route because cargo and passenger traffic are supporting each other. The trucks (vehicle combinations) will remain the main mode of transport on the Helsinki-Tallinn route because general cargo is the main commodity on the route. IMO’s sulphur regula-tions and the changes in the structure of the Finnish industry may create prerequisites for rail road transport in the hinterland connections of Finland.

Driver of Demand in Cargo and Passenger Traffic Between Penta Ports

Maritime transport moves around 6 billion tonnes of freight every year. The freight consists of liquid bulks (45%), dry bulks (23%) and general cargo (32%). Freight traffic and transports chains vary according to region, commodity and the origin and the destination of freight. In the European Union the ports sector handles over 90% of the trade with third countries. The share of intra-EU trade is approximately 30% of the total transportation and the number of passengers is over 200 million every year. The Baltic Sea has more than 50,000 vessels a year pass the Skaw at the northernmost tip of Denmark on their way into or out of the Baltic. Roughly 60% to 70% of these vessels are cargo vessels and 17% to 25% tankers. Ports and maritime transport play a crucial role in global commerce today. Today’s business environment is changing rapidly, and the constant changes create challenges for the transport industry and maritime traffic. Ports have to adapt to continuous changes in economic structures, logistics demands, and people’s travel and leisure patterns. In order to ensure the competitiveness of sea connections, the ports need to fully enhance multilateral cross-border understanding and cooperation. In this report the focus is on liner traffic between five ports in the Central Baltic Region: Stockholm, Tallinn, Helsinki Turku and Naantali. The report defines the drivers of the demand for cargo and passenger traffic and highlights the most important factors. The economic situation and foreign trade of each county are elaborated on with detailed information about the flows of traffic between the five ports. Based on expert interviews, the main characteristics of each port, including strengths and weaknesses, are presented. The report is based on primary and secondary data. Primary data was received through interviews and mail surveys. Secondary data was attained through a literature research, statistics, data given by the PENTA ports and webpages. The report is divided into two main parts: the drivers creating the demand for transport and the results of current cargo and passenger flows between PENTA ports.

Logistics of North-West Russia and Rail Baltica: Standpoints of Private Sector

The main aims of the present report are to describe the current state of railway transport in Russia, and to gather standpoints of Russian private transportation logistics sector towards the development of new railway connection called Rail Baltica Growth Corridor, connecting North-West Russia with Germany through the Baltic States and Poland. North-West Russia plays important role not only in Russian logistics, but also wider European markets as in container sea ports handling is approx. 2.5 mill. TEU p.a. and handling volume in all terminals is above 190 million tons p.a. The whole transportation logistics sector is shortly described as an operational environment for railways – this is done through technical and economic angles. Transportation development is always going in line with economics of the country, so the analysis on economical development is also presented. Logistics integration of the country is strongly influenced by its engagement in the international trade. Although, raw material handling at sea ports and container transports (imports) are blossoming, domestic transportation market is barely growing (in long-term perspective). Thus, recent entrance of Russia into World Trade Organization (WTO) is analyzed theme in this research, as the WTO is an important regulator of the foreign trade and enabler of volume growth in foreign trade related transportation logistics. However, WTO membership can influence negatively the development of Russia’s own industry and its volumes (these have been uncompetitive in global markets for decades). Data gathering in empirical part was accomplished by semi-structured case study interviews among North-West Russian logistics sector actors (private). These were conducted during years 2012-2013, and research compiles findings out of ten case company interviews. Although, there was no sea port involved in the study, most of the interviewed companies relied in European Logistics within significant parts in short sea shipping and truck combined transportation chains (in Russian part also using railways). As the results of the study, it could be concluded that Rail Baltica is seen as possible transport corridor in most of the interviewed companies, if there is enough cargo available. However, interviewees are a bit sceptical, because major and large-scale infrastructural improvements are needed. Delivery time, frequency and price level are three main factors influencing the attractiveness of Rail Baltica route. Price level is the most important feature, but if RB can offer other advantages such as higher frequency, shorter lead times or more developed set of value-added services, then some flexibility is possible for the price level. Environmental issues are not the main criteria of today, but are recognized and discussed among customers. Great uncertainty exists among respondents e.g. on forthcoming sulphur oxide ban on Baltic Sea shipping (whether or not it is going to be implemented in Russia). Rather surprisingly, transportation routes to Eastern Europe and Mediterranean area are having higher value and price space than those to Germany/Central Europe. Border crossing operations (traction monopoly at rails and customs), gauge widths as well as unclear decision-making processes (in Russia), are named as hindering factors. Performance standards for European connected logistics among Russian logistics sector representatives are less demanding as compared to neighbourhood countries belonging to EU.

Myynti ja toimituskanavan valinta ulkomaan kaupassa, kohdemaa Venäjä

Parissa kymmenessä vuodessa on tapahtunut paljon muutoksia. Neuvostoliitto hajosi, Suomen talousrakenne muuttui, globalisaatio kiihtyy kasvavalla vauhdilla, viennin kuljetusmuotoihin on tullut muutoksia, mutta yritystoiminta edellyttää pysymistä ajan tasalla. Tässä diplomityössä tutkitaan myynti- ja toimituskanavien valintoja EU:sta Venäjälle tapahtuvissa viennissä. Työssä käytetään Venäjältä saatavaa tietoa, sillä suurimmat lopputulokseen vaikuttavat kuljetuskustannukset kuten kuljetus, tavaran käsittely ja välivarastointi syntyvät Venäjän puolella. Vienti EU:sta Venäjälle on kasvanut koko ajan tasaisella vauhdilla ja muodostanut samalla tavanomaisesta poikkeavia kuljetusmenetelmiä. Suomessa pk-yrityksillä ei ole resursseja perehtyä aiheeseen, mutta koko ajan yhä useammat yritykset harjoittavat kauppaa ohjaamalla tavaran valmistajalta suoraan vastaanottajalle. Silloin tavara on lähetettävä esimerkiksi eurooppalaiselta keskusvarastolta Venäjälle, jolloin säästytään turhista kuljetuksista Suomen kautta. Työssä tutkitaan yleisimpiä käytössä olevia kuljetusmuotoja, rautatiekuljetuksen potentiaalia ja maantiekuljetuksen mahdollisuuksia. Siinä analysoidaan logistisen teorian pääpiirteitä, yritystoiminnan logistisia prosesseja samoin kuin EU:n vientisäädöksiä ja EU:sta lähtevien vientikuljetuksien organisointiongelmia. Käytössäni on logististen prosessien rakenteen metodologia. Työssä suoritetaan vientiprosessin tutkimus ja esitetään suoritetun tutkimuksen tulokset. Tuloksien pohjalta tehdään päätökset.