Demand for smaller vessels, including tugs, barges and offshore support vessels, has proved more resilient. Usage of these vessels hinges less on global trade cycles and more on port activity, marine construction, energy services and infrastructure spending, all of which are holding up well.
After a once-in-a-generation pandemic boom, Asia’s maritime services industry has entered a more sober and disciplined phase.
Ship chartering remains above pre-Covid norms but is off the euphoric highs of 2021–2022. Tankers have outperformed, with Western sanctions reshaping oil trade flows and pushing cargoes onto longer routes, driving up charter rates in the process. Demand for dry bulk vessels is still volatile, while container chartering has cooled, albeit cushioned by long-term contracts signed during the boom.
