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The introduction of standardised shipping containers in the mid-twentieth century transformed global trade in ways few predicted at the time. Before containers, goods were loaded onto ships piece by piece, a slow and labour-intensive process that left cargo vulnerable to damage and theft. The metal box, identical in size everywhere, allowed cranes to move freight quickly between ships, trucks and trains without repacking. This sharply reduced the cost of moving goods, making it economical to manufacture products in one country and sell them across the world. Many historians now regard the container as one of the quiet engines of modern globalisation.