Analysis of resilience evolution in China’s coastal ports from the temporal-spatial perspective

Against a backdrop of frequent global emergencies, heightened uncertainty in the shipping environment, and increasing complexity in port operations, the risk shocks faced by port systems have significantly intensified. Enhancing the comprehensive resilience of ports has thus become a critical task in port development. To systematically characterize the evolution of resilience in China’s coastal ports, this study examines 10 representative coastal ports from 2013 to 2022. An evaluation framework for port resilience is constructed across three dimensions—absorption capacity, adaptation capacity, and recovery capacity—using the Entropy Weighting‑TOPSIS combined model for comparative analysis. The findings demonstrate that overall port resilience in China’s coastal ports showed a steady upward trend during the study period, though significant disparities existed among different ports. Spatially, port resilience exhibited a pattern of “strongest in the east, followed by the south, with notable variations in the north.” Shanghai Port and Ningbo‑Zhoushan Port formed high‑resilience core zones, while small and medium‑sized ports still exhibited significant shortcomings in resilience. The findings of this study provide a reference basis for enhancing the risk response capabilities of China’s coastal ports and promoting high‑quality port development. The observed spatial heterogeneity suggests that targeted resilience‑building strategies are needed for different port clusters, particularly for smaller ports with limited infrastructure and financial buffers.