Driven by North American capital and Asian manufacturing, the sector has shifted from bank debt to Sale and Leaseback models. Strict environmental regulations are now rewriting asset values, creating a distinct split between premium eco-vessels and obsolete legacy tonnage.
Chicago, Jan. 23, 2026 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — The global ship leasing market size was valued at USD 16.85 billion in 2025 and is projected to hit the market valuation of USD 68.76 billion by 2035 at a CAGR of 15.10% during the forecast period 2026–2035.
As of 2025, the demand for ship leasing is surging due to a “perfect storm” of capital constraints and regulatory pressure. Traditional European banks have retreated from shipping finance to sustainable supply chain finance due to Basel IV capital requirements, forcing owners to seek alternative financing like Sale and Leaseback (SLB) structures. Simultaneously, the Green Transition is effectively mandating fleet renewal; owners must order expensive dual-fuel vessels to comply with CII and EU ETS regulations but lack the immediate equity to fund them.
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Leasing houses—particularly Chinese state-owned enterprises—are filling this void by offering high loan-to-value (LTV) ratios and off-balance-sheet financing, effectively becoming the de facto “banks” of the maritime world.
Key Findings in Ship Leasing Market
- By Region: North America held the leading position in the global market, accounting for the largest share at 38% in 2025.
- By lease types: financial leases claimed the top market share in 2025.
- By Type: The bareboat charter category dominated by type, securing the highest revenue share in 2025.
- By Application: Container ships led the applications segment, driving the majority of the market share in 2025.
By Lease Type, Financial Leasing Claims Largest Market Share Through Green Sale Leaseback Aggression
The financial leasing segment solidified its dominance in ship leasing market by pivoting aggressively toward “green” sale-and-leaseback (SLB) structures that fund decarbonization. This, in turn, is also giving boost to the carbon credit market. This segment effectively outperformed traditional bank loans by offering up to 100% financing for high-value eco-tonnage which banks often deem too risky. A defining moment in late 2025 was CMA CGM’s entry into a
16.74 billion in 2025, growing at a robust CAGR of over 15%. This volume was supported by Chinese lessors who controlled over 60% of the total ship leasing orderbook by year-end, proving that financial leasing is now the primary engine for industry-wide green transition.
By Type, Bareboat Charter Controls Highest Revenue Share Via Strategic LNG Asset Acquisitions
Bareboat charters secured the highest revenue share in the ship leasing market by becoming the preferred mechanism for managing long-term infrastructure assets like LNG carriers and tankers. This dominance stems from the model’s ability to provide stable, long-duration cash flows to lessors while transferring technical risks to operators. In Q3 2025, Ocean Yield reported a massive EBITDA backlog of $4.3 billion, largely driven by its strategic acquisition of CapeOmega’s ten LNG carriers. Similarly, SFL Corporation reported a fixed-rate charter backlog of $4.0 billion in its Q3 2025 earnings, underscoring the immense revenue visibility this segment offers.
Operators like Nordic American Tankers also extended bareboat agreements in mid-2025, adding $170 million to the leasing backlog in a single transaction. These deals reflect a market shift where investment-grade energy majors, such as Shell and QatarEnergy, exclusively utilize bareboat contracts to secure tonnage for decades, thereby guaranteeing this segment’s revenue superiority.
By Application, Container Ships Retain Dominant Market Share Fueled By Dual Fuel Deliveries
Container ships maintained their lead in the ship leasing market, driven by a record-breaking delivery schedule of dual-fuel vessels that fundamentally reshaped fleet compositions. The year 2025 marked a decisive “LNG Renaissance” as operators prioritized immediate emission reductions over uncertain future fuels. Data from Lloyd’s List confirms that 292 alternative-fuel ships were delivered in 2025, with LNG dual-fuel vessels accounting for 75% of this new capacity.
Conversely, orders for methanol-powered ships plummeted to just 12% of the orderbook in late 2025 due to supply chain anxieties, consolidating the focus on LNG-ready container tonnage. This influx caused the global container fleet to grow by 5.8% in 2025, according to BIMCO, outpacing all other vessel classes. The dominance of the 12,000–17,000 TEU “Neo-Panamax” segment, which now constitutes 22% of the total fleet capacity, further ensured that container ships generated the majority of leasing transactions and capital expenditure.
Chinese Lessors Expanding Portfolios With Aggressive Capital Deployment Strategies
Asian financial institutions are reshaping the global maritime landscape through rapid asset accumulation. Chinese leasing houses have become the primary source of capital within the ship leasing market for 2024 and 2025. Bank of Communications Financial Leasing (Bocomm Leasing) exemplifies this growth by reporting a massive fleet size of 432 vessels in its 2024 portfolio update. Their shipping portfolio asset size notably exceeded RMB 100 billion during the same period. Furthermore, Bocomm achieved an annual increase in its shipping portfolio of nearly RMB 20 billion. Such aggressive expansion highlights the strategic pivot toward maritime assets by state-owned enterprises to secure global supply chains.
Financial performance metrics reinforce the dominance of these eastern entities. CSSC (Hong Kong) Shipping reported a fleet size of 138 vessels as of December 31, 2024. Their revenue generation remains robust, with CSSC Shipping reaching HKD 4.03 billion in 2024. Profitability also remains high as they recorded a net profit of HKD 2.16 billion. Simultaneously, CDB Leasing executed 9 new shipbuilding orders in 2024 valued at USD 849 million. These figures indicate that the ship leasing market is currently driven by deep-pocketed Asian lessors capable of funding large-scale fleet renewals despite global economic headwinds.
Container Sector Demonstrates Resilience Through Stabilized Rates And Strategic Growth
The container segment continues to provide steady returns for lessors despite fears of oversupply. Spot rates for leasing a 40-foot container (FEU) from the Far East to the US West Coast averaged USD 2,044 in October 2025. Rates for the Far East to US East Coast route held steady at approximately USD 2,953 per FEU. Additionally, Transpacific leasing rates from the Far East to the Mediterranean tracked at USD 2,367 per FEU. Such stability suggests that the ship leasing market for containers has found a new equilibrium. Lessors are leveraging these sustained rates to lock in long-term revenue streams.
Corporate entities are capitalizing on this stabilized environment to bolster their balance sheets. Global Ship Lease added USD 352 million in contracted revenues during Q1 2025 alone. Their portfolio security is evident, as the weighted average remaining lease duration for their fleet was 2.3 years as of March 2025. Seaspan Corporation reported an Adjusted EBITDA of over USD 1.8 billion for the full year 2024. Furthermore, Seaspan’s total fleet capacity reached 1.9 million TEU by mid-2025. These metrics confirm that major players in the ship leasing market are maintaining profitability through strategic tonnage management.
Tanker Valuations Surge Amidst Geopolitical Instability and Elevated Daily Hires
Energy transportation remains a highly lucrative segment for asset owners due to tight tonnage availability. VLCC time charter equivalent rates hovered around USD 82,608 per day in October 2025. Suezmax tanker rates were similarly strong, reported at USD 53,690 per day in late 2025 analysis. High-profile fixtures underscore this trend, as the tanker Nissos Anafi was fixed on a charter at USD 126,630 per day. Consequently, the ship leasing market for wet bulk is experiencing a period of extraordinary yield. Owners are maximizing these daily hire rates to offset higher capital costs associated with fleet maintenance.
Investment structures in the tanker sector are evolving to reflect these high asset values. Top Ships entered a sale and leaseback deal with a fixed bareboat hire rate of USD 7.3 million per annum for VLCCs in 2024. The repurchase obligation for these leased vessels was set at USD 37.5 million per vessel at the end of the term. Newbuilding costs are also rising, with a methanol dual-fuel VLCC price confirmed at USD 107.5 million in a November 2024 deal. Moreover, leased Aframax rates doubled between mid-2024 and mid-2025. These figures illustrate the capital-intensive nature of the current ship leasing market.
Dry Bulk Assets Appreciating With Robust Daily Rates And New Orders
The dry bulk sector offers consistent performance with specific vessel classes seeing rate appreciation. Capesize bulk carriers averaged a daily lease rate of USD 21,613 during the June–July 2025 period. Smaller vessel classes also performed well, as Kamsarmax vessels recorded an average daily rate of USD 12,564 in mid-2025. Panamax bulkers saw daily lease rates average USD 11,153 in the summer of 2025. Newbuild leasing contracts for Ultramax bulkers were signed at USD 35 million per vessel in January 2025. These consistent returns make dry bulk a foundational element of the ship leasing market.
Strategic investments are increasingly targeting next-generation, eco-friendly dry bulk tonnage. Cosco Shipping Bulk ordered ammonia-ready bulkers at a price of USD 77 million each in November 2025. The total value of this four-vessel ammonia-ready bulk carrier deal was USD 308 million. Furthermore, Kamsarmax newbuilds were contracted at USD 37.5 million per unit in early 2025 deals. Investors are clearly prioritizing assets that align with future environmental regulations. Therefore, the ship leasing market is witnessing a bifurcation where modern, eco-efficient bulkers command significantly higher asset values and lease rates.
Decarbonization Mandates Driving Premium Pricing For Green Compliant Vessel Tonnage
Environmental regulations are forcing a costly but necessary transformation of the global merchant fleet. Switching a standard container ship order to methanol dual-fuel cost an additional USD 28.5 million per vessel in 2024. Even making a newbuild vessel “Ammonia Ready” added approximately USD 2 million to the base construction cost. Regulatory pressures are intensifying, as the EU Emissions Trading System (ETS) required shipping companies to pay for 40% of their verified emissions in 2024. The liability threshold increased to 70% of emissions for the 2025 compliance year. Consequently, the ship leasing market is adapting to finance these significant “green premiums.”
Major operators are committing substantial capital to secure future-proof tonnage. Hapag-Lloyd committed USD 500 million for eight dual-fuel methanol ships in a 2025 leasing structure. These dual-fuel vessels are projected to save 350,000 metric tons of CO2 equivalent annually. Seaspan aims for 25% of its total fleet capacity to run on alternative fuels by 2029. Such commitments indicate that environmental compliance is no longer optional but a core driver of asset strategy. The ship leasing market is now the primary mechanism enabling operators to afford the high capital expenditures required for decarbonization.
Extended Voyage Distances Creating Artificial Demand Spikes For Available Tonnage
Geopolitical disruptions are fundamentally altering route dynamics and soaking up vessel capacity. Diversions around the Cape of Good Hope added 3,000 nautical miles to a typical Asia-Europe voyage in 2024. Global TEU-mile demand increased by 16% in 2024 directly due to these Red Sea diversions. Vessel travel distances for affected routes surged 60% in March 2024 compared to January. This inefficiency acts as a multiplier for the ship leasing market by necessitating more ships to move the same amount of cargo. Lessors benefit significantly as operators scramble to secure additional tonnage.
Freight rates have reacted sharply to these extended transit times. Freight costs on the Far East to US West Coast route rose 241% in 2024 compared to pre-crisis levels. Rates to Europe increased 148% in 2024 due to the capacity soak-up. Furthermore, rates to the Mediterranean jumped 112% in 2024 as leasing markets tightened. An overall 17.2% increase in TEU-mile demand was recorded for full-year 2024. These statistics confirm that geopolitical instability is a key demand driver for the ship leasing market, keeping utilization rates artificially high.
Financial Structuring Adjusts To Capital Costs While Maintaining Liquidity Access
Transaction structures are evolving to accommodate higher interest rate environments while providing essential liquidity. Loan-to-Value (LTV) ratios for top-tier sale and leaseback transactions reached 80% in 2024. However, the cost of funds has risen, as Cap rates on sale-leaseback deals increased by 100 to 200 basis points in 2024. CMA CGM executed a USD 1.2 billion sale and leaseback transaction with ICBC Leasing for 9 vessels. Top Ships’ leaseback agreement included a repurchase option valid after 1 year for the vessel Eco Malibu. The ship leasing market remains flexible, offering bespoke solutions to navigate complex financial landscapes.
Repayment terms and margins reflect the current risk-reward assessment by lessors. The amortization schedule for Top Ships’ leased vessels was set at USD 2.2 million per annum per vessel. Sale and leaseback interest margins averaged 2.5% to 2.65% plus SOFR in 2024 deals. Additionally, Global Ship Lease sold three older vessels for an aggregate gain of USD 28.5 million in Q1 2025 to optimize its leased fleet. These figures demonstrate that while money is more expensive, the ship leasing market continues to facilitate critical capital release for shipowners through sophisticated financial engineering.
Newbuilding Contract Values Reaching Record Highs Due To Heavy Orderbooks
Primary market activity indicates sustained confidence in long-term demand for maritime assets. The total value of global shipbuilding contracts signed in 2024 was USD 204 billion. Investment momentum carried into the new year, as owners spent USD 905 million on new orders in the first 17 days of January 2025. Asset prices reflect this demand; a 1,900 TEU container ship newbuild was priced at USD 32 million in January 2025. Seaspan aggressively ordered 27 new container ships in a single month during June 2024. Such heavy ordering activity guarantees future growth for the ship leasing market.
Asian shipyards are capturing the vast majority of this capital inflow. The backlog of committed aircraft and ships for CDB included 210 assets at the start of 2025. Chinese shipyards captured 100% of the mainstream shipping orders placed in the first three weeks of 2025. Cosco Shipping signed a massive USD 2.15 billion contract for twelve 14,000 TEU methanol ships in August 2024. These massive capital commitments suggest that the ship leasing market will remain the dominant method for financing the next generation of global merchant vessels.
Operational Excellence and Low Recycling Rates Bolstering Corporate Financial Performance
Supply constraints are supporting asset values as older vessels remain in service longer. Only 324 merchant ships were recycled globally in 2024. The total gross tonnage of recycled ships was just 4.6 million GT. This volume represented the lowest level recorded since 2005. Recycling volumes dropped 30% in 2024 compared to 2023. Specifically, just 17 crude oil tankers and 54 container ships were recycled. In Q1 2024, only 2 million DWT of capacity was removed. The ship leasing market benefits as tight supply keeps older assets earning revenue.
Leading lessors are translating these market conditions into formidable financial results. Seaspan’s fleet grew to 182 vessels by June 30, 2025, after adding 50 ships between 2023 and 2024. Their TEU capacity increased by 75-80% over the 2021–2025 period. Global Ship Lease reported Q1 2025 operating revenue of USD 191.0 million and Net Income of USD 121.0 million. CSSC Shipping maintained a Return on Equity (ROE) of 15.7% in 2024. Their Return on Assets (ROA) improved by 0.3 percentage points to reach 4.8%. These metrics confirm the ship leasing market is delivering exceptional value to stakeholders.
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Ship Leasing Market Major Players:
- A.P. Møller – Mærsk A/S
- Bank of Communications Financial Leasing Co., Ltd
- Bothra Group
- CMB Financial Leasing CO., LTD.
- First Ship Lease Trust
- Galbraiths Ltd.
- Global Ship Lease, Inc.
- Hamburg Commercial Bank AG
- ICBC Co., Ltd.
- Minsheng Financial Leasing Co., Ltd.
- MUFG Bank, Ltd.
- Other Prominent Players
Key Market Segmentation:
By Lease Type
- Financial Lease
- Full-Service Lease
By Type
- Real-Time Lease
- Periodic Tenancy
- Bareboat Charter
- Other Types
By Application
- Container Ships
- Bulk Carriers
By Region
- North America
- Europe
- Asia Pacific
- Middle East and Africa
- South America
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