Korea expects to be world's No. 5 shipping power by 2010

摘要

Korea expects to become the fifth-largest shipping power in the world by 2010 as specialized funds and tax benefits help local companies expand their fleets, the government said Thursday (May 22).The Ministry of Land, Transport and Maritime Affairs said as of 2007 Korea ranked sixth with 36.80 million deadweight tons (DWT) of registered ships.Greece topped the list with 175.70 million DTWs of registered ships, followed by Japan, Germany, China and Norway. DWT is the main measure of a ship's carrying capacity."As of May, local shipping companies have ordered 22.00 million DWTs of ships that will be delivered in the coming years, which should be sufficient to push up Korea's overall ranking by at least one notch," said a government official.