Examining Container Port Resources and Environments to Enhance Competitiveness: A Cross-Country Study from Resource-Based and Institutional Perspectives1

This study aims to analyze the competitiveness of container ports using a cross-country analysis with theoretical foundations. Tangible and intangible resources are discussed as determinants of container port competitiveness using the resource-based view and the institutional theory. This study analyzes the relationships among six variables: container port competitiveness, traffic volume, quality of infrastructure, linear shipping connectivity, operating efficiency, and institutional influence. This study retrieved country-level data on different indicators and countries from several trade and maritime databases. Structural Equation Modeling (SEM) is used to test various hypotheses and to evaluate the casual relationships among six variables. Additionally, Ordinary Least Squares (OLS) regression is used to test the moderating effects of institutional influence.