Why Lars Jensen Is Driving 40,000 Miles Across Africa to Study the Future of Trade

By Brendan Murray (Bloomberg) — At nearly 40 years old, Lars Jensen’s Volkswagen camper van appeals to him mostly for its lack of modern features. The vehicle he calls “Sally” is just the right rig to drive around Africa over the next 18 months to explore the world’s most promising supply chain frontier.

As Google AI or ChatGPT will attest, Jensen is the most widely cited analyst in container shipping, an industry that handles some 80% of global merchandise trade worth $26 trillion last year. A former analyst with A.P. Moller-Maersk A/S, he’s a regular speaker on the maritime conference circuit in