Japan continues to control the world’s most valuable fleet, according to analysis by VesselsValue.
Its annual World Fleet Values list of the top ten highest value fleets shows Japan at number one controlling assets valued at $206bn, up 5% on last year, keeping ahead of second place China on $204bn.
The analysis, carried out by Rebecca Galanopoulos-Jones, senior content analyst at Veson Nautical, attributed Japan’s growth partly to the addition of 100 tankers to its fleet.
The tanker sector has experienced some significant asset value gains over the past year.
Japan is also a leader in high-value ships, such as gas carriers, and controls a fleet of LNG carriers valued at $37.8bn and a fleet of LPG carriers worth $13.4bn.
China is the largest country in terms of ship ownership by vessel numbers, with 6,084 ships under its control. But, as its dominance is in the relatively lower-value bulker sector the national fleet is valued at $204bn.
China is a leading player in the growing high-value container ship fleet in which it controls 1,011 vessels.
But, values in this sector have been falling year on year by around 20% for 20-year-old handysize containerships.
Greece stays third in terms of number of vessels and the value of its fleet, which is worth $169.3bn. Its tanker fleet is the world’s most valuable at $69.5bn, with the current geopolitical turmoil helping to push up tanker values.
Greece is also the owner of the second largest LNG carrier fleet, with 143 vessels and a fleet value of $31.1bn.
The US, Singapore and South Korea are ranked fourth, fifth and sixth, respectively.
Among the movers, Norway has overtaken Germany into the position of seventh most valuable national fleet, due to its investment in gas carriers.
The UK has also overtaken Germany which has fallen into ninth place after being hit by a fall in container ship values.
Hong Kong has broken into the top ten for the first time. Its $44.7bn fleet has benefited from rising values in the dry bulk sector which makes up a quarter of ships controlled from Hong Kong.
