Freight and cargo ships, cruise liners and private yachts have all come under attack.

CNN: U.S. military considers options to deal with Somali pirates

It was a wreck of a cargo ship, running freight over Europa and the Orient.

NPR: Excerpt: 'Skybreaker'

Distrust of the GDP numbers has prompted Capital Economics, a research firm based in London, to create its own proxy of economic activity, which includes electricity output, domestic freight volumes, cargo traffic at ports, passenger transport and floor area under construction.

ECONOMIST: Is China overstating its true rate of growth?

In freight, the Japanese have agreed to let Federal Express ferry cargo to Beijing and Shanghai via Japan.

ECONOMIST: Japanese airlines

Major domestic airlines have based 80 percent of their freight capacities at the Pudong airport, which now ranks No. 3 by cargo turnover, after Hong Kong and Memphis, Tennessee.

FORBES: FedEx Investing $100 Mln In China