2024 China Port, Shipping, and Shipbuilding Listed Companies Profitability Ranking Officially Released, Seacon Shipping Ranks Third!

May 1, 2025, Shanghai. Beyond Shipping officially released the "2024 China Port, Shipping, and Shipbuilding Listed Companies Profitability Ranking" (hereinafter referred to as "the Ranking" or "the List"). Seacon Shipping ranked third in terms of Return on Equity (ROE).

Preface

This year marks the tenth anniversary of Beyond Shipping's release of the "China Port, Shipping, and Shipbuilding Listed Companies Profitability Ranking," which has consistently garnered attention from the industry. In 2024, the domestic and international economic environment was complex and challenging, with global supply chains undergoing profound transformations. Domestically, the national economy operated steadily with progress, high-quality development advanced solidly, and new productive forces grew steadily. Internationally, global economic recovery was uneven, inflation levels in major economies generally declined, international financial market volatility increased, and geopolitical tensions intensified.

According to data from the General Administration of Customs, in 2024, China's total import and export value of goods trade reached 43.85 trillion yuan, a year-on-year increase of 5%, achieving simultaneous growth in volume, increment, and quality. The number of foreign trade enterprises with actual import and export performance approached 700,000, setting a new record. By the end of 2024, the number of China's "Authorized Economic Operator" (AEO) enterprises reached 6,338, an increase of 612 compared to the end of 2023.

In terms of export product types, in 2024, China's export of mechanical and electrical products reached 15.12 trillion yuan, a year-on-year increase of 8.7%, accounting for 59.4% of the total export value and driving a 5.1 percentage point growth in total commodity exports. Among these, ten categories—computer products, integrated circuits, automobiles and parts, household appliances, general machinery equipment, ships, audio-visual products, liquid crystal flat-panel display modules, and medical instruments—achieved export growth, highlighting the optimization and upgrading of China's trade export structure and the resilience of mechanical and electrical product exports.

In terms of trade partners, in 2024, China's total import and export value with countries jointly building the "Belt and Road" initiative reached 22.07 trillion yuan, a year-on-year increase of 6.4%, accounting for over 50% of China's total import and export value for the first time. Among these, imports and exports with ASEAN grew by 9%, marking the fifth consecutive year that China and ASEAN have been each other's largest trade partners. Since the implementation of the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP) three years ago, China's cumulative import and export value with other RCEP member countries reached 38.57 trillion yuan, with the scale of goods trade accounting for over 30% of China's total import and export value, demonstrating sustained regional cooperation vitality.

Data from the Ministry of Transport shows that in 2024, China's ports handled a total cargo throughput of 175.95 billion tons, a year-on-year increase of 3.7%, of which coastal ports handled 112.18 billion tons, up 3.5%. Container throughput reached 332 million TEUs, a year-on-year increase of 7%, of which coastal ports handled 292 million TEUs, up 7.2%. Cargo throughput and container throughput continued to rank first in the world; meanwhile, among the top ten ports in these two rankings, China accounted for eight and six spots, respectively.

Data from the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology shows that in 2024, China's international market share in shipbuilding remained globally leading, with the three major shipbuilding indicators ranking first in the world for 15 consecutive years. Shipbuilding completions, new orders, and hand-held orders were 48.18 million deadweight tons, 113.05 million deadweight tons, and 208.72 million deadweight tons, respectively, accounting for 55.7%, 74.1%, and 63.1% of the global total. Among these, new orders and hand-held orders reached the highest levels in China's shipbuilding history. Additionally, among the 18 major ship types globally, China ranked first in new orders for 14 types, with all domestic shipyards exceeding their annual operational targets and rapid growth in market demand.

In 2024, the shipping market faced challenges such as a complex global economic environment, geopolitical conflicts, supply-demand imbalances, and green transformation, presenting new opportunities and challenges for global supply chains. Port and shipping listed companies actively explored new markets and fields while stabilizing existing businesses, expanding their scope to achieve diversified development. They drove high-quality industry development through digital and intelligent technologies, fostering shared and interconnected industry and supply chain ecosystems. They also led sustainable development through green and low-carbon transformation, steadfastly pursuing a path of green and low-carbon growth. Next, Beyond Shipping will reveal these companies' key performances in 2024.

Ranking Methodology

This ranking selects companies listed on the Shanghai Stock Exchange, Shenzhen Stock Exchange, Beijing Stock Exchange, Hong Kong Stock Exchange, and Taiwan Stock Exchange Main Board in 2024, with core businesses in port and terminal investment and operation, transport vessel investment and operation, shipbuilding and repair, and related shipping services. It covers mainland China, Hong Kong SAR, and Taiwan region, encompassing ports, shipping, shipbuilding, and related service sectors.

This year's list includes 83 companies, with some changes: First, two companies were removed—Huarong Energy (01101HK) was delisted, and ST Jin Port (600190SH) did not disclose financial reports. Second, three companies were added—Huige Environmental (02613HK), T.S. Lines (02510HK), and Songfa Co., Ltd. (603268SH)—due to their relevance to shipping transport.

The ranking continues to use "Return on Equity (ROE)" and "Net Profit" as the two key metrics, listed in separate rankings.

Return on Equity (ROE), also known as shareholder equity return, net value return, equity profit rate, or net asset profit rate, is a comprehensive metric representing the percentage of net profit to average shareholder equity. It measures how efficiently a company uses its own capital. A higher value indicates better returns on investment, reflecting the ability to generate net profits from shareholders' equity. ROE is considered a universal metric for comparing profitability across companies of different industries, sizes, and business models. However, ROE is not perfect, as net profit is not solely generated by equity, and ROE does not fully reflect a company's capital utilization capabilities. Therefore, we retain the Net Profit ranking.

The "Net Profit" in this ranking refers to "Net Profit Attributable to Shareholders of the Listed Company" or its equivalent, a critical financial indicator for listed companies. Net Profit directly reflects a company's operational performance during the reporting period—essentially whether it "made money" or "lost money." It is a fundamental factor for investors to assess returns, a basis for management decisions, and an important measure of profitability.

[Ranking Notes:]

[1. Original data sourced from annual reports, prospectuses of listed companies, and East Money; collected, organized, calculated, and tabulated by Beyond Shipping.]

[2. ROE and Net Profit are precise to two decimal places. For identical values, higher net assets rank higher.]

[3. All monetary units are converted to RMB (100 million yuan). Exchange rates are based on Bank of China's forex rates: USD at 7.23, HKD at 0.94, and TWD at 0.22.]

[4. For companies listed in both Shanghai and Hong Kong, A-share performance data is used.]

Ranking Overview

Among the 83 companies on the list, 77 were profitable (92.77%), and 6 were loss-making (7.23%). The total net profit reached 229.04 billion yuan, with an average net profit of 2.76 billion yuan.

[(Note: Profitability refers to Net Profit > 0; loss refers to Net Profit < 0.)]

Among all listed companies, shipping companies accounted for 49 (59.0%), port companies for 22 (26.5%), and shipbuilding companies for 12 (14.5%).

By listing location, 41 companies were listed in Shanghai (49.4%), 13 in Shenzhen (15.7%), 10 in Taiwan (12.0%), 17 in Hong Kong (20.5%), and 2 in Beijing (2.4%).

Among the top 10 companies by ROE, shipping companies occupied 9 spots, and shipbuilding companies occupied 1 spot. SITC International (01308HK) topped the list with an ROE of 47.62%. Among the bottom 10 by ROE, shipping companies occupied 5 spots, port companies 2 spots, and shipbuilding companies 3 spots, with Songfa Co., Ltd. (603268SH) at the bottom with an ROE of -207.77%.

Among the top 10 companies by Net Profit, shipping companies occupied 7 spots, and port companies 3 spots. COSCO SHIPPING Holdings (601919SH) led with a net profit of 49.1 billion yuan. Among the bottom 10 by Net Profit, shipping companies occupied 6 spots, port companies 3 spots, and shipbuilding companies 1 spot, with China Dredging Environment (00871HK) at the bottom with a net loss of 322 million yuan.

Notably, China Shipbuilding Technology (600072SH), Chongqing Port (600279SH), and Ningbo Shipping (600798SH) reported positive net profits but negative non-GAAP net profits: -47 million yuan, -41 million yuan, and -13 million yuan, respectively. Additionally, Phoenix Shipping (000520SZ) and Songfa Co., Ltd. (603268SH) reported both net profits and non-GAAP net profits as negative.

Combining both rankings, COSCO SHIPPING Holdings (601919SH), Evergreen Marine (2603TW), SITC International (01308HK), Orient Overseas (International) Limited (00316HK), and Yang Ming Marine Transport (2609TW) recorded high values in both ROE and Net Profit, making them the top performers in 2024. China Dredging Environment (00871HK), Phoenix Shipping (000520SZ), Songfa Co., Ltd. (603268SH), Sincere Navigation (5608TW), and First Steamship (2601TW) recorded low values in both metrics, ranking as the weakest performers.

Shipping Companies

This year's list includes 49 shipping companies, including maritime logistics and freight forwarding firms. Among them, 46 were profitable (93.88%), and 3 were loss-making (6.12%). The total net profit for 2024 was 165.962 billion yuan, with an average net profit of 3.387 billion yuan.

Among shipping companies, SITC International (01308HK) ranked highest in ROE, while Phoenix Shipping (000520SZ) ranked lowest. COSCO SHIPPING Holdings (601919SH) ranked highest in Net Profit, while Phoenix Shipping (000520SZ) ranked lowest.

By listing location, 21 shipping companies were listed in Shanghai (42.86%), 6 in Shenzhen (12.24%), 10 in Taiwan (20.41%), 10 in Hong Kong (20.41%), and 2 in Beijing (4.08%).

Port Companies

This year's list includes 22 port companies, with 20 profitable (90.91%) and 2 loss-making (9.09%). The total net profit for 2024 was 50.198 billion yuan, with an average net profit of 2.282 billion yuan.

Among port companies, Qingdao Port (601298SH) ranked highest in ROE, while China Dredging Environment (00871HK) ranked lowest. Shanghai International Port Group (600018SH) ranked highest in Net Profit, while China Dredging Environment (00871HK) ranked lowest.

By listing location, 11 port companies were listed in Shanghai (50.00%), 6 in Shenzhen (27.27%), and 5 in Hong Kong (22.73%).

Shipbuilding Companies

This year's list includes 12 shipbuilding companies, with 11 profitable (91.67%) and 1 loss-making (8.33%). The total net profit for 2024 was 12.879 billion yuan, with an average net profit of 1.073 billion yuan.

Among shipbuilding companies, Huige Environmental (02613HK) ranked highest in ROE, while Songfa Co., Ltd. (603268SH) ranked lowest. China CSSC Holdings Limited (600150SH) ranked highest in Net Profit, while Songfa Co., Ltd. (603268SH) ranked lowest.

By listing location, 9 shipbuilding companies were listed in Shanghai (75.00%), 1 in Shenzhen (8.33%), and 2 in Hong Kong (16.67%).

Beyond Shipping will continue to monitor the performance of China's port, shipping, and shipbuilding listed companies in terms of Net Profit and ROE, while closely tracking their progress in green and low-carbon development and digital-intelligent transformation.

Source: Beyond Shipping