John Martin, Ph.D.

Martin & Associates

John Martin is president of Martin Associates, which he founded in 1986, and has provided economic, market and planning studies to most of the nation's seaports. He also provides ongoing economic and planning consulting services to terminal operators, ocean carriers, and government agencies, as well as to the major airports in the United States. Over the past 25 years, Dr. Martin has conducted more than 500 port economic, planning and marketing studies for seaports in the United States, Asia, Europe and South America.  He has recently been involved in assessing the economic costs of terminal congestion at container terminals, the economic costs of the West Coast Port shutdown and the impact of restrictive trade policies on the marine transportation system. 

For the Marine Transportation System National Advisory Council, Dr. Martin was the principal author of U.S. Economic Growth and the Marine Transportation System, which documented the economic value of the MTS and further identified the key constraints and issues facing the MTS.  The paper was presented to Vice President Cheney as well as DOT Secretary Mineta as a transition paper for the Bush Administration..

 As principal author of the Economic Impact of Steel Imports on the Nation's Marine Transportation System, Dr. Martin documented the economic impact of the steel imports into the United States and identified the potential cost of steel import quotas. In January 2002, Dr. Martin testified before the Council of Economic Advisors and the International Trade Policy Council regarding the imposition of the steel import quotas. 

Dr. Martin has also prepared the economic analysis for the 1999 ILWU contract negotiations at the West Coast ports.  His reports were used by the Clinton Administration to “encourage” the discontinuation of work slowdowns by the ILWU at the Ports of Oakland and Los Angeles/Long Beach.

Most recently, he was deeply involved in evaluating the economic impacts of the 2003 West Coast Port shutdown.  As part of this analysis, the Martin Associates economic impact models were reviewed and used by the U.S. Federal Reserve Board of Governors, the Bush Administration and the U.S. Council of Economic Advisors.  During the shutdown, he appeared on CNN, CNBC, the BBC, and NPR regarding the economic dislocations that occurred during and after the West Coast port shutdown. He is currently involved in assessing the potential impacts of various security measures imposed at U.S. port marine terminals.

John holds a Ph.D., Masters and BS in Economics and has been providing consulting/research services to the maritime industry since 1974.  

His presentation today will focus on the Economic Value of the West Coast Ports.