Efficiency Analysis of the Coastal Port Group in the Yangtze River Delta

Abstract

In recent years, the coastal ports of the Yangtze River Delta have rapidly developed with the progress of science and technology, which has caused some problems on account of the rapid development of ports. On the one hand, there is fierce competition within the same port group; on the other hand, many ports waste resources. This study selected the three-stage data envelopment analysis (DEA) and Malmquist index models to calculate and analyze the efficiency value of the coastal port group in the Yangtze River Delta; the study was conducted to make a reference for the formulation of the optimization strategy from the perspectives of static and dynamic efficiency. The results show that from the perspective of static efficiency, the comprehensive efficiency of the Yangtze River Delta coastal port cluster is at the upper-middle level. However, it has not yet reached the frontier surface, and the low scale efficiency is why the port group has not been called the frontier surface. From the perspective of dynamic efficiency, the total factor productivity of the Yangtze River Delta port group has increased by 3.6% in the past five years. Technological progress and comprehensive technical efficiency have improved. The optimization strategy was formulated according to the problems faced by the Yangtze River Delta port group and the reasons for not reaching the frontier.