Korea has moved up in the ranking of the world's top 10 ship-owning nations to sixth place.
According to the Korea Maritime Institute, Korea as of January owned 1,063 ships, some 36.7-million DWT, or deadweight tonnage which measures how much weight a ship can carry. From January 2007 to this past January that figure jumped almost 16 percent.
Korea surpassed the U.S. and Hong Kong and now trails behind number one Greece, and Japan and Germany.
The larger presence among the world's largest shipping nations is due to growth at Korea's leading logistics companies like Hyundai Merchant Marine and Hanjin Shipping, which has led to more ship acquisitions.
The total number of ships owned by 30 maritime nations worldwide rose 7 percent over the past year.
While foreign ship ownership accounts for almost 69 percent on average for the world's maritime nations, Korea's purchase rate of foreign ships is far lower at 50 percent. That is because Korea also has a large shipbuilding industry.
But while ship-owning nations Japan and Germany run ships that are less than nine years old on average, Korea's shipping companies own ships that are over 16 years old. This, experts say, tops the global average of 15.4 years, a sign that Korea's ships are in need of replacement.
According to the Korea Maritime Institute, Korea as of January owned 1,063 ships, some 36.7-million DWT, or deadweight tonnage which measures how much weight a ship can carry. From January 2007 to this past January that figure jumped almost 16 percent.
Korea surpassed the U.S. and Hong Kong and now trails behind number one Greece, and Japan and Germany.
The larger presence among the world's largest shipping nations is due to growth at Korea's leading logistics companies like Hyundai Merchant Marine and Hanjin Shipping, which has led to more ship acquisitions.
The total number of ships owned by 30 maritime nations worldwide rose 7 percent over the past year.
While foreign ship ownership accounts for almost 69 percent on average for the world's maritime nations, Korea's purchase rate of foreign ships is far lower at 50 percent. That is because Korea also has a large shipbuilding industry.
But while ship-owning nations Japan and Germany run ships that are less than nine years old on average, Korea's shipping companies own ships that are over 16 years old. This, experts say, tops the global average of 15.4 years, a sign that Korea's ships are in need of replacement.