Top 100 - China leads Lloyd's List ranking of industry influencers in 2017

CHINA has dominated this year's annual ranking of influence in the shipping industry, taking over the top four positions in the newly published Lloyd's List Top 100 Most Influential People in Shipping report.

More than 10% of the entrants in this year's list hail from China, reflecting the growing influence China's state-owned enterprises have in almost every sector of the shipping industry.

The Top 100, which is produced each year by the Lloyd's List editorial team as an exercise in assessing the shifting dynamics in the industry and the individuals behind the power plays, is led by China's president Xi Jinping.

Explaining the editorial decision to opt for a politician rather than a direct shipping industry figure, editor of the Top 100 Helen Kelly said: "Xi Jinping's policies and ambition will arguably define the next phase of globalisation and his strategic political decisions are directly influencing every aspect of the shipping markets."

Elsewhere on the list, Greek shipowners continued to hold sway in most sectors, diversifying traditional fleets of dry bulk tankers. Several key Greek players have consolidated power within industry bodies, seeking influence at a regulatory level.

Cyber security unsurprisingly features in the list this year, while several shipping outsiders have secured their position through a strategy of upending old ways of doing business and leading the charge to bring greater efficiency and transparency via digitalisation.

This year's Lloyd's List Top 100 Most Influential People in Shipping is available here, along with a selection of specific sector-focused Top 10 lists.

Full list here

Top stories:

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A significant step has been made in that direction not only by Inmarsat's opening an office in the Norwegian Maritime Competence Centre in Alesund, but also by a commitment from the London-headquartered mobile satellite communications business to "intensify work with third party innovators and digital disrupters".

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Opinion:

DNV GL reveals a new singlemindedness

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That is the essence of DNV GL's announcement about bringing all its shares under the control of Stiftelsen Det Norske Veritas, with German investors Gunter Herz and Daniela Herz-Schnoekel releasing their 36.5% stake in DNV GL AS.

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Thinking outside the box

THIS week, two insightful industry notes proved that equity analysts can think outside the box when they are not busy forecasting next quarter's earnings, writes Lambros Papaeconomou.

Ditto for a private equity firm that offered a shrewd lesson in year-end tax planning. And since we are in full holiday spirit, we have an early Christmas present in the form of a friendly wager.

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In brief

Yang Ming looks to acquire new ships up to 11,000 teu

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IMO appoints new faces as veterans step down

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BIMCO and CIRM propose software maintenance standard to curb cyber attacks

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Kexim bank looks to increase financing for shipbuilders in 2018

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SSY buys Danish dry bulk shipbroker Bidsted

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Maersk launches booking system with cancellation penalty

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Containerised freight key in boosting intermodal transportation in India

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