ATHENS: Xu Lirong, head of China Cosco Shipping Corporation, holder of a controlling stake in Piraeus Port Authority, is the man with the greatest influence in global shipping, according to the annual rankings of Lloyd’s List. The top 100 includes 15 Greek shippers.
The Chinese group, which boasts assets worth $90 billion and manages more than 1,100 ships, and has the capability, to a great extent, to shape the environment in which it operates.
Hanjin/KDB/Korea Inc, representing the South Korean shipping industry and banks, comes second on the list, due to the repercussions generated around the world by the corporate restructuring of the country’s shipping companies and the Hanjin bankruptcy. Maersk Group’s Robert Uggla and Soren Skou are third.
The highest-ranked Greek is John Angelicoussis, the strongman of the Angelikoussis Shipping Group, who is ranked seventh in the list. Other Greek shipping magnates on the Lloyd’s List chart are George Prokopiou (12th), Angeliki Frangou (19th), George Economou (20th), Peter G. Livanos, Petros Pappas, Nikolas Tsakos, Kostis Konstantakopoulos, Theodore Veniamis and Peter Georgiopoulos.
Wilbur Ross, a major stakeholder in Eurobank and Bank of Cyprus, and Donald Trump’s pick to become the next US commerce secretary, ranks 17th with his companies Navigator Holdings, Diamond S Shipping, Diamond S Shipping Group and Nautical Bulk Holdings.
