According to Allied Shipbroking, Greek-owned shipping companies ordered the construction of 164 ships in the past 12 months, ahead of Japanese shipowners with 144.
Singapore and China came third and fourth in the year-end rankings with 110 and 92 orders, respectively. A total of 2,420 orders were placed in 2023, worldwide.
According to Allied records, China was by far the most successful shipbuilding country last year after its yards won almost half of the 1,845 orders across all major sectors such as dry bulk carriers, tankers, containers and gas.
Chinese builders took 859 of the orders placed in 2023, compared to 191 for Japanese shipyards and 177 for South Korea.
China dominated each of the sectors with the exception of natural gas carriers, where it won 56 orders compared to 62 won by South Korean shipyards that are leaders in the construction of liquefied natural gas carriers.
Greek shipowners ordered double the number of vessels 164 compared to the 81 contracts they had signed during 2022.
In 2023 the Greeks were particularly active in tanker shipbuilding contracts, accounting for more than half of their total newbuild contracts.
Allied states that:
Ship purchases
The shipping companies with Greek interests also dominated the markets of second hand ships with the number reaching 233 ships out of the total of 1,731 ships that changed hands last year, a rate of 13.4%.
More specifically, the Greeks bought 157 bulk carriers, double the 77 bulk carriers acquired by Chinese shipowners, who were in second place ahead of third-placed Turkish owners.
Greek shipowners were also narrowly in first place in tankers buying 49 ahead of Chinese buyers with 46 deals.
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