Amid Industry Downturn, Global Shipping Sees Record-Low Growth

After its maiden voyage from China, the largest container ship to ever make port in North America, unloads its cargo in the Port of Los Angeles on Dec. 26, 2015. The major shipping companies in Europe and Asia began ordering the state-of-the-art, supersized ships back in 2011, when times were better.
Scott Varley/AP
The massive container ships that ply the high seas bring us pineapples and mangoes in winter, and computers and cheap t-shirts all year round. But the shipping industry is a volatile