China and Greece Join Forces in Groundbreaking Shipping Finance Agreement
On Friday, the Lujiazui Financial City Council of Shanghai, China and the Hellenic Shipping’s Association of Banking and Financial Executives inked a deal for shipping finance collaboration during a virtual gathering.
The pact establishes a joint platform that will foster communication between shipping companies and financial organizations from both shipping hubs, as stated by the representatives from both sides.
According to Kostas Katsafados, Greece’s Deputy Minister of Maritime Affairs and Island Policy, the agreement “will further cement the nations’ ties in the financial sector.” He also emphasized that the signing of the agreement symbolizes the long-term partnership and close relationship between the two maritime centers.
In recent years, Greece and China have formed a robust complementary relationship centered around the sea. Greek ship owners, who control a quarter of the global ocean-going merchant fleet, have a natural synergy with China, the largest exporter in the world, as explained by Katsafados.
In the past 15 years, Greek ship owners have ordered over 1,000 ships worth more than $50 billion from Chinese shipyards. On the other hand, Chinese banks have a $3 billion exposure to the Greek shipping sector, according to Katsafados.
The agreement was signed by Huang Hongyuan, representative of the Lujiazui Financial City Council chairman and vice president of Bank of Communications in China, and George Xiradakis, president of the Hellenic Shipping’s Association of Banking and Financial Executives in Greece.
