Ms. LIN Cuizhu and Ms. LIU Rong, two CILPA members were invited to speak at the 8th International Conference on Maritime Law which was held from 14-16 October, 2015 in the "Northern Pearl" of China, the city of Dalian.

Looking back on the past six years, with the sustained recession of the global economy, the shipping industry experienced a difficult time to walk out of the trough at an extremely slow pace. However, in view of the current recovery of the United States economy and a gradual improvement of the global economy, the shipping market is showing signs of rejuvenation. Especially in China, the establishment of four pilot free trade zones in Shanghai, Guangdong, Fujian and Tianjin, the national strategy for the revitalization of the maritime industry, the development of the twenty-first century Maritime Silk Road jointly with other countries, and the comprehensive advancement of the rule of law, have made major strides towards the promotion and development of the Chinese and the global shipping industry.