China Overtakes Greece as World’s Largest Shipowning Nation

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China has overtaken Greece in the number of vessels under beneficial ownership, becoming the world’s largest shipowning nation by vessel numbers.

But according to French shipbroking house BRS, the shift in rankings does not necessarily mean that China has surpassed Greece in overall maritime influence.

In its Weekly Dry Bulk Newsletter published on June 25, 2026, BRS examined the question in its “Topic of the Week”, titled “Does Scale Equal Dominance?” The analysis compares the Chinese and Greek shipping models and concludes that the two countries increasingly represent two distinct forms of maritime power.

China’s model centres on trade volume, industrial capacity, capital and strategic support, while Greece continues to rely heavily on global commercial networks, asset management and flexible vessel deployment.

China now controls around a quarter of the global fleet

Using beneficial ownership — the entity that ultimately controls and benefits from a vessel — BRS estimates that Chinese-controlled ships now represent approximately 25% of the global fleet by vessel numbers.

Greece follows with about 11%.

China’s expansion has been particularly pronounced in dry bulk shipping and tankers.

The country accounted for approximately 40.5% of global seaborne bulk commodity imports in 2025, while its merchandise exports reached approximately $3.77 trillion, or about 14% of global goods exports.

That enormous cargo base gives Chinese shipping companies an advantage that few other maritime nations can match.

China’s fleet expansion therefore serves both commercial and strategic objectives. BRS links the growth to the need to secure import supply chains, support exports and strengthen national control over strategically important transportation capacity.

The expansion also forms part of China’s wider industrial strategy.

Since the second half of 2024, COSCO Shipping’s “Hundred Ships Plan” has accelerated, with the group targeting a major increase in carrying capacity through the construction of around 100 large vessels.

State-owned companies play an important role.

Citing figures from the Union of Greek Shipowners, BRS says approximately 44% of Chinese-controlled tonnage belongs to state-owned enterprises, while state-owned companies account for about 64% of China’s newbuilding orders.

China’s shipping competitiveness consequently rests on several interconnected advantages: cargo access, economies of scale, industrial capacity, capital and government support.

Greece remains a global shipping power

The Greek model operates differently.

Chinese shipping remains closely connected to the country’s enormous domestic trade flows and strategic requirements. Greek shipping, by contrast, has traditionally focused on international cross-trading, third-party transportation and tramp shipping.

Greece does not have a domestic cargo base anywhere near large enough to support a fleet of its current scale. Nevertheless, Greek shipowners have remained among the world’s most influential maritime investors for decades.

BRS estimates that Greek owners control around 5,800 vessels, including approximately 2,766 bulk carriers. That represents about 22% of the global dry bulk fleet.

The Greek-controlled merchant fleet exceeds 458 million dwt, equivalent to approximately 19.1% of global fleet capacity.

Perhaps most importantly, more than 98% of Greek-controlled capacity operates in third-country trades.

That international reach helps explain why Greek shipping influence cannot be measured simply by counting vessels.

Greek owners have built extensive relationships with charterers and commodity traders, developed strong access to international finance and established deep links with brokers and maritime service providers.

They have also developed considerable expertise in buying, selling and redeploying vessels across international markets.

Greece is selling older ships and renewing its fleet

Losing the No. 1 position in vessel numbers does not mean Greek shipping is retreating.

The Greek dry bulk fleet continues to expand, although at a slower pace.

BRS says the growth rate of the Greek-controlled dry bulk fleet has declined from 5.4% in 2016 to around 3.2% today.

The figures instead point to an active fleet-renewal strategy.

Greek owners have remained major sellers of older vessels. In 2025, the average age of dry bulk ships sold by Greek owners stood at around 19 years.

With secondhand vessel prices remaining elevated during the previous two years, owners had an opportunity to sell older ships after recovering much of their original investment.

Chinese buyers have played a particularly important role in that market.

BRS estimates that around 39% of the secondhand bulk carriers sold by Greek owners in 2025 went to Chinese buyers.

The transactions illustrate how the two maritime powers increasingly interact.

Greek owners sell older vessels into a strong secondhand market, while Chinese buyers acquire some of that tonnage. Greek owners then reinvest in newer ships, many of which they order from Chinese shipyards.

China builds more than half of Greece’s dry bulk fleet

The relationship between China and Greece extends well beyond competition.

Chinese shipyards have become a major source of fleet renewal for Greek owners.

Approximately 55% of the Greek-controlled dry bulk fleet, measured by deadweight tonnage, was built in China, according to BRS.

Greek owners currently have around 133 bulk carriers under construction in Chinese shipyards, representing approximately 14.7% of China’s dry bulk orderbook.

That makes Greek shipowners the second-largest customer group for Chinese dry bulk shipyards, behind Chinese owners themselves, who account for approximately 41.3% of the orderbook.

Only 19 vessels in the Greek bulk carrier orderbook are currently being built outside China.

The figures reveal a relationship that goes well beyond a simple China-versus-Greece rivalry.

Chinese shipowners are expanding on the back of trade, capital and industrial policy, while Chinese shipyards have become a critical platform for Greek fleet modernisation.

Older Greek vessels increasingly move into Asian markets, including China, while newer and more efficient ships emerge from Chinese shipyards and enter Greek-controlled fleets.

Fleet size does not automatically mean market dominance

BRS argues that scale alone does not determine influence in dry bulk and tramp shipping.

These markets remain highly fragmented and competitive. Ships can also move relatively quickly between regions, cargoes and trading patterns.

That makes operational expertise, asset allocation and flexibility crucial competitive advantages.

Greek owners have maintained their resilience through a fragmented but specialised ownership structure. They can move vessels between markets and cargo flows as commercial conditions change.

That flexibility becomes particularly valuable during shipping cycles.

Greek shipowners have historically bought vessels when asset prices fall, ordered newbuildings when market conditions and shipyard availability favour investment, and sold older vessels when secondhand prices rise.

This approach has helped them remain deeply involved in transporting energy products, minerals and agricultural commodities despite changes in global fleet rankings.

Two models of maritime power

China’s rise reflects the growing ability of a major manufacturing and trading power to control more of the maritime transportation capacity required to support its economy.

Greek shipping derives its strength from a different foundation: a global commercial network developed over decades, sophisticated asset management, international financing relationships and the ability to reposition ships across markets.

China’s key advantages are cargo access, capital scale, industrial capacity and strategic policy support.

Greece’s advantages are global operating experience, asset trading, commercial decision-making and cross-regional flexibility.

BRS therefore does not view China’s overtaking of Greece as evidence that Greek maritime leadership has declined proportionately.

Instead, it sees the development as a shift toward two distinct models of shipping power.

China is building maritime strength through scale, trade integration and industrial coordination.

Greece continues to exercise influence through global third-party shipping, commercial agility and active asset management.

The distinction could become increasingly important as shipping faces geopolitical disruption, changing trade routes, rising operating costs and the transition toward lower-emission vessels.

Fleet size will remain important, but vessel numbers alone may no longer provide a complete measure of maritime power.

The future leaders of global shipping will also need to secure cargo, manage capital cycles, control costs, deploy vessels efficiently and adapt their fleets to changing geopolitical and energy markets.

The relationship between China and Greece consequently remains both competitive and complementary.

They compete for fleet scale, market share and maritime influence, while simultaneously becoming more interconnected through shipbuilding, secondhand vessel transactions and the wider maritime supply chain.

The emerging relationship between these two fundamentally different shipping models could become one of the defining features of the next phase of global maritime development.

(Source: Xinde Marine News)

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