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INDUSTRY NEWS |
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• Shipping industry transports 90% of the world’s trade cargo and serving as the
life blood of the global economy. Without shipping, intercontinental trade, the
bulk transport of raw materials, and the import/export of affordable food and manufactured
goods would simply not be possible.
• Ships are technically sophisticated, high value assets (larger hi-tech vessels
can cost over US $150 million to build), and the operation of merchant ships generates
an estimated annual income of over US $380 billion in freight rates, representing
about 5% of the total global economy. There are around 50,000 merchant ships trading
internationally, transporting every kind of cargo. The world fleet is registered
in over 150 nations, and manned by over a million seafarers of virtually every nationality.
• Shipping is the safest and most environmentally friendly form of commercial transport.
Perhaps uniquely amongst industries involving physical risk, But Shipping was amongst
the very first industries to adopt widely implemented international safety standards.
• Because of its inherently international nature, the safety of shipping is regulated
by various United Nations agencies. The International Maritime Organization (IMO)
in particular has developed a comprehensive framework. Shipping is the least environmentally
damaging form of commercial transport and, compared with land based industry, is
a comparatively minor contributor to marine pollution from human activities.
As at 1st January 2008, the world trading fleet was made up of 50,525 ships, with
a combined tonnage of 728,225,000 Gross Tonns
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Figures in brackets are numbers of ships, by sector.
General Cargo ships (18,982)
Bulk Carriers (6,890)
Container ships (4,170)
Tankers (12,583)
Passenger ships (5,957)
Other (1,943)
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TOTAL (50,525)
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The Human Element
If the ships, ports and supporting infrastructure make up the limbs of the maritime industry,
the passionate people behind the metal structures represent its pumping heart and lifeblood.
There are millions of people employed in shipping-related roles around the world, from the more
obvious seafarers and port operators, to the less obvious journalists and financiers and everything
in between.
Experience the real face of the maritime industry through its people: the glue that binds this vast
and exciting business together
Seafarers
The worldwide number of seafarers serving on internationally trading merchant ships is estimated to be
in the order of 466,000 officers and 721,000 ratings.
North America, Western Europe, Japan etc. remain an important source for officers, but growing numbers of
officers is now recruited from the Far East and Eastern Europe.
The majority of the shipping industry's ratings are recruited from developing countries, especially the Far
East and South East Asia.
The Philippines and India are very significant maritime labour supply nations, with many seafarers from these
countries enjoying employment opportunities on foreign flag ships operated by international shipping companies.
China has also seen a large increase in the number of seafarers, but at the moment most of these work on the
Chinese fleet, meeting domestic requirements.
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Eastern Europe has recently become an increasingly large supplier of seafarers with high numbers from countries
including the Ukraine, Croatia and Latvia.
Greece, Japan, Russia and the United Kingdom also supply seafarers but the number is very low.
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