Market Research

Shipping Strategy builds on our team's combined two centuries of experience to provide you with unrivalled market research covering shipping, shipbuilding, and marine fuels. Our clients include governments, international finance houses, asset managers, ship owners and operators, shipbuilders, engineering companies, charterers, ship brokers, insurers, stockbrokers, legal firms, industry associations, and media companies.

Our keystone product is our highly-regarded Markets Monthly, a 24 page subscription report (link above) covering macro economics, oil tanker, bulk carrier and container ship freight, time charter and asset markets, with in-depth, independent commentary and historical perspective. We have no book of our own to talk, so we can offer a fully impartial view of the market outlook for any ship type.

- How to scope the market for your engineering, hardware or software product.

- The freight market outlook for a specific type and size of ship.

- Asset price developments and forecasts for investors, including certified valuations.

- A market outlooks for an investment prospectus e.g. for pre-IPO or IPO purposes.

We have a six-year track record of projects, some of which are described here.

In 2024, we undertook market research for a maritime software and hardware company developing a new situational awareness product. We conducted surveys and interviews with potential customers across the world including ship owners and ship yards to identify their current practice, pain points and challenges, wish-lists and their views on pricing options. These input into the customer's product development, sales and marketing strategy.

In 2023 we worked with a large, diversified ship owner to develop a Time Charter pricing model for its fleet of bulk carriers, enabling it to negotiate better time charter rates with its customers. We also created a monthly market monitor for the customer to help it stay abreast of market developments.

In 2023 we wrote a market research report on mid-sized LPG tankers for investors seeking a niche in this space. We reported on fleet supply including vessel size preference, demand including key charterers and growth geographies, earnings, including a five year forecast, asset values and investment opportunities.

In 2021 we performed a shipbuilding market segmentation analysis and forecast to 2030 on behalf of a navigation OEM, inputting into its sales, production and HR strategies for the coming decade.

In 2024 we provided clients with a market outlook for Long Range 1 oil products tankers. These Panamax-sized ships have been overlooked in recent years as many owners have ordered smaller Medium Range tankers or larger Long Range 2 tankers. However, we thought that piggy-in-the-middle might become Goldilocks. In 2024, LR1 tankers have earned $47k a day, comfortably their best year since 2008. They have also out-earned MRs ($37k a day) and LR2s ($39k a day), proving our point that this was a highly investible ship type.

In 2023 we wrote a bulk carrier market outlook to 2030 for a Supramax ship operator looking to raise funds to move into ship owning. The customer is in the process of negotiating with investors.

In 2022 we scanned the market for low-emission fuel capable ships for an asset manager to invest in, We covered all shiptypes, the current fleet, orderbook and possible future developments. The investor has gone on to purchase a number of vessels.

In 2020 we wrote a Handysize Bulk Carrier Market Outlook to 2030 for an Asian operator to incorporate into its pre-IPO prospectus. After a successful listing, the client has gone on via mergers to operate a fleet ten times larger than when we were engaged.

In 2020 we performed a market scope for domestic and international shipbuilding markets on behalf of the UK Department of Trade, as part of its review of government policy on UK shipbuilding.

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Market Research

Shipping Strategy Ltd