Greek-owned fleet extends its global lead

By Ilias Bellos

The Greek-owned merchant fleet remains a world leader in terms of value, with assets whose worth is estimated at $105.65 billion, above the combined fleets of the United Kingdom, Germany and Norway, according to data compiled by VesselsValue.com, which specializes in ocean-going ship valuations.

The figures show that the Greek fleet?s value has increased by 4.5 percent compared to last year, indicating that efforts to enlarge and modernize Greek shipping are paying off. They also reflect the fleet?s increased market shares, which are also global frontrunners.

Coming a distant second behind Greece is Japan, whose fleet is valued at $89.75 billion (up 0.7 percent from last year). China comes in third with a value of $72.67 billion (down 2.6 percent). The combined value of the global fleet is estimated at $680.4 billion, up 3.2 percent from last year.

Among the traditional European shipping powers, the Greek-owned fleet appears to have more than twice the value of German-owned ships, which add up to $49.7 billion (posting a decline of 6.6 percent from last year), three times that of the Norwegian-controlled fleet and five times that of British-owned ships.