Singapore once again got top spot in the annual index of the world’s leading “shipping hubs” in The Xinhua-Baltic International Shipping Centre Development Index (ISCDI) 2025 published by the Baltic Exchange in collaboration with Xinhua News Agency.

It ranks the world’s most important shipping hubs based on port factors, business services, and regulatory conditions.

Singapore scored 99.50 out of 100 on the index, once again being named the world’s leading shipping hub.

London came second with a score of 81.02, followed by Shanghai.

Fourth and fifth place go to Hong Kong and Dubai, respectively, while Rotterdam—Europe’s largest port—ranks sixth, as it did in 2024.

Interestingly, of the top 20, 10 were countries in Asia, with China holding five spots. 

In a press release issued by the Baltic Exchange, it said “Singapore’s continued success is attributed to the country’s strategic location, strong international orientation, and a well-established ecosystem of professional maritime services.”

Mark Jackson, CEO of the analytics firm Baltic Exchange, in the press release, said, “This year’s rankings reaffirm the crucial role of established maritime centers like Singapore, London, and Shanghai, alongside emerging hubs, in providing the infrastructure and expertise needed to keep supply chains efficient and reliable amid persistent geopolitical tensions and economic uncertainty.” 

The report has ranked several Chinese port cities higher than last year, including Guangzhou, Qingdao, and Tianjin, as well as Ningbo-Zhoushan, which moved up for the third consecutive year to seventh place.

“This strong performance reflects China’s continued investments and growing global influence as a maritime powerhouse,” the statement reads.

For the first time, the US ports of Los Angeles and Vancouver made it into the top 20, taking the last two spots.

In compiling the report, 43 maritime locations were examined, with factors such as port cargo throughput, the number of cranes, quay length, and draft helping to determine the rankings.

In addition, access to various services such as ship brokerage, ship management, ship financing, insurance, and legal services is taken into account.

The overall business environment is also considered, including, for example, customs rates, public electronic services, and overall logistics performance.

Container market

In an outlook of the container market, it said the market showed signs of life, although it was not immune to volatility that hit the global supply chain.

Despite these headwinds, the container sector continued to show renewed growth in 2024. 

According to Container Trade Statistics, global volumes of containerised goods rose more than 6% compared to 2023. 

Part of the reason for 2024's strong growth was the flat performance in 2023. 

The sector continued to recover from the pandemic and major stockpiling efforts of 2022, with container players beginning to enjoy things returning to what would traditionally be considered normal. 

Dominant Asia and America Container traffic out of Asia dominated 2024, with more than 61% of global exports coming from the Far East. 

Volumes from the region grew 8% in 2024, with strong export markets in North America, Europe, the Middle East and the Indian Subcontinent. 

Europe, meanwhile, accounted for 15% of container exports, with North America (8%) India & the Middle East (7%), and South & Central America (5%) making up the bulk of the rest. 

Asia also dominated global container imports in 2024, accounting for 39% of container imports. Meanwhile, Europe and North America both accounted for 19% each, while India & the Middle East (10%), South & Central America (6%) and Australasia (4%) made up the rest. 

One of the biggest growth stories of 2024 was that seen in the Indian Sub-Continent & the Middle East, which saw container trade grow 34% in 2023 and more than 58% compared to 2022. The majority of this growth is attributed to India, where imports have more than doubled over the last couple of years. 

The report concluded that the past year has been one of recovery for the container market as it continued to adapt to volatility in the global supply chain, and crucially find ways to remain profitable in turbulent times. 

“Soaring profits meant many lines splashed out on new vessel orders as they take a long-term look at tonne-mile demand in 2024 and beyond. For the ports, almost all saw 2024 as a much stronger year compared to 2023. Ports in China and throughout Southeast Asia saw much stronger container throughput across 2024 as demand for goods in North America and Europe continued to rise.” 

Dry bulk shipping

It was an unexpectedly positive year for the global dry bulk market, with records being broken across the board every quarter, the report noted. 

According to data from AXSMarine, global dry bulk seaborne trade exceeded 5.6 billion tonnes in 2024, a new industry record, with every quarter setting its own record and surpassing 2023 levels by 4.2% on average. As the world's leading iron ore consumer, activity in China was largely responsible for these heightened trade levels. 

More than 1.24 billion tonnes of iron ore were imported by China in 2024, up 5% from 1.18 billion tonnes a year earlier according to data from China's General Administration of Customs (GAC).

Demand for coal, the second most common dry bulk commodity after iron ore, surpassed more than 1 billion tonnes once again in 2024. 

Indonesia and Australia shipped significantly more steam coal, with much of it heading to China to meet renewed demand. China alone imported more than 540 million tonnes of coal in 2024, which is roughly 41% of global coal imports. India remained the world's second largest importer, taking in more than 250 million tonnes, while Vietnam recorded a sharp increase in coal demand as it quickly expands its regional power infrastructure.  

Record production levels meant global soybean trade hit new heights in 2024. 

Roughly 152 million tonnes of soybeans were shipped last year, with more than 100 million tonnes of that total coming from Brazil, a year-on-year increase of 3%, according to AXSMarine. 

Argentinian supplies also bounced back from a particularly weak 2023, although US exports fell to below 40 million tonnes as China relied more heavily on South America for its soybean trade. Other grain cargoes, such as wheat and corn.

The report said one of the biggest questions facing the market is how it is going to absorb the nearly 36 million dwt of new vessels that will come online in 2025. 

According to Maritime Strategies International, more than 240 million tonnes of additional cargo will be needed to absorb those new vessels, which will be a tall order for a dry bulk sector that is seeing slowing growth and changing trading patterns. 

The report also looked at the industry sector-wise.

Tanker shipping

2024-2025 was a strange time for tankers. 

Rising water levels in the Panama Canal and a lifting of transit restrictions in 2024 did remove one of the key barriers to elevated freight rates last year, particularly for the US market. 

This was critical as the US Gulf region was one of the few bright spots for the tanker market in an otherwise poor year.

When it comes to major waterways, the continued de facto closure of the Red Sea to tanker vessels was felt strongly, with LR2 rates soaring at the start of the year as many vessels rerouted around the Cape of Good Hope, leading to increased tonne-miles. 

However, these rates fell throughout as tanker players adapted to the new norm and shifting trade patterns meant importers sought supplies from closer to home, the report noted. 

Meanwhile, the crude and product tanker orderbook surged in 2024, continuing the trend seen in 2023. According to AXSMarine data, by the end of 2024, more than 105 million dwt was in the orderbook.

In the LNG market, global exports increased 1.6% in 2024 to reach 411.5 million tonnes. 

However, despite this increase in exports, an oversupply of new LNG carriers meant that spot charter rates were mostly flat throughout the year. 

More than 60 new vessels hit the water in 2024, while more than 80 more are expected by 2026. 

That means shipping capacity in the LNG sector is growing faster than expected production increases over the coming two years, leading to a vast number of vessels either laid up or sent for scrap. 

In 2024, however, this meant that the traditional spike in gas demand usually seen in winter months was not realised, with LNG carrier overhang causing some charter rates to fall from $200,000/day in November 2023 to just $50,000/day in November 2024. This was further exacerbated by a boost in trade between the United States and the European Union due to the shorter routes across the Atlantic.

In the LPG carrier sector, it was a mixed performance in 2024.