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MANAGING TRADE COMPLEXITY
Context
Shipping sits at the heart of both global trade and global commodity markets. While economic development continues to underpin growth, with seaborne trade reaching 12.9bn tonnes last year, fundamental change in the geo-political order is driving ever-increasing complexity. From the impacts of tariffs and trade deals to that of wars and sanctions, shipping is often at the ‘front line’ of global events and the disruption, volatility and uncertainty involved. From re-routing away from the Red Sea and changing energy flows from Russia, Iran and Venezuela, to the development of a sanctioned fleet of 1,000 tankers and volatile US trade and foreign policy, shipping market resilience and the security of supply chains is being consistently tested. With these growing complexities, demand for brokers and service providers that can truly partner and support market participants through risks and opportunities continues to build.
What this means for Clarksons
Clarksons is uniquely positioned to offer trusted guidance and support through complex markets. Our investment in scale, our market-leading position, our global presence and our depth of expertise allow us to help clients manage risk and opportunity across the freight and commodity landscape. Our powerful research, technology and analysis aids intelligence-led decisionmaking. And our industry-leading team of legal and compliance experts, combined with our use of data and technology, differentiates our service offering in an increasingly complex world. We are the trusted partner for our industry as complexity builds in our markets.
12.9bn
Global seaborne trade in tonnes in 2025
16%
Share of global tanker fleet capacity under sanction (US/UK/EU/UN)
4%
Share of seaborne trade volumes subject to fresh tariffs in 2025
NAVIGATING ENERGY TRANSITION
Context
As the world looks to balance the vital need for energy security with the long-term need for energy transition, navigating these needs will be a fundamental driver for our markets. Today 5bn tonnes of energy commodity is moved by sea, including rapidly growing gas trades, oil trades that will remain significant for decades ahead and coal trades that are mature but volatile. While global consensus on tackling climate change may appear to be stalling, the global energy mix in the future will involve emerging cargoes such as ammonia, CO2 and hydrogen that will need to be moved by sea. The marine intensive offshore energy industry is also crucial to balancing energy security and energy transition: offshore oil and gas provides over 16% of global energy supply, requiring important investment for the future, while offshore wind accounts for a still limited 0.5% of global primary energy supply but has increased nearly 10-fold over the last decade.
What this means for Clarksons
Clarksons is positioned to support and benefit from the twin needs of energy security and energy transition. Our chartering teams are long-term global market leaders in enabling the flow of crude oil and oil products via the tanker markets. They are well positioned as market leaders in the LNG and LPG growth markets and are active in the emerging markets that will require seaborne transportation, including ammonia and CO2. We have maintained our leading position in offshore oil and gas broking while building out a dedicated offshore renewables broking and advisory team which has also become a market leader, focusing on the offshore wind industry. Our Support and Financial divisions, leveraging our expertise in offshore oil and gas, have also built dedicated renewables teams while our Financial division is also active in specialist battery minerals, carbon and hydrogen. Our Research division continues to develop world-leading, trusted research and intelligence on the global energy and offshore industries, helping to create a framework for our clients as they manage both energy security and the energy transition.
5bn
Seaborne trade in ‘energy’ cargoes in 2025
16%
Share of the global energy mix produced offshore
x10
Increase in offshore wind power generation over the last decade
DELIVERING FLEET RENEWAL
Context
Today the world fleet totals over 120,000 vessels of 2.5bn dwt, having grown by 120% since 2008. There are underlying trends that drive fleet renewal, as trade volumes and shipping demand grows, as shipping fleets age, as technology and design evolve and as the industry develops its decarbonisation pathway. This fleet renewal is hugely capital intensive, with the fleet and orderbook today valued at US$2.1tn, and is facilitated by a growing and increasingly complex newbuilding market, a dynamic sale and purchase market and a recycling market that will need to grow capacity to meet future requirements. While developments at the IMO in 2025 show that the consensus on emissions regulation has stalled with uncertainty on the pace and direction to come, investment in alternative fuels and energy saving technologies continues.
What this means for Clarksons
Our broking teams are market leaders through the full lifecycle of assets in every segment of shipping. Clarksons is uniquely placed to advise, execute and finance fleet renewal strategies, from our deep expertise and track record in newbuilding to our leading Sale & Purchase team, and efforts to ensure responsible recycling of older
vessels. Our Financial division supports clients through an increasingly complex shipping finance landscape, through accessing capital markets, project finance, debt markets and leasing structures. Our Research division is a leading provider of data and intelligence to shipyards, equipment suppliers, class societies, regulators and ship financiers. Strong synergies between our teams enhance our ability to offer clients unrivalled support in developing and executing fleet renewal strategies.
US$2.1tn
Value of the world fleet and orderbook at the start of 2026
13yrs
Average age of the fleet (GT-weighted)
47%
Share of the world orderbook by tonnage that is alternative fuelled
LEVERAGING TECHNOLOGY
Context
Rapid development and adoption of technology globally is accelerating, enhancing productivity, resilience and supporting data-driven decision-making. The rise of artificial intelligence (‘AI’) is also amplifying this trend, creating further opportunities for automation and innovation. For the maritime industry there are widespread potential applications and benefits, but there are also risks, and the need to provide trusted data, intelligence and software services from industry experts is increasingly vital. This need for established partners who can combine deep understanding of technology with shipping domain expertise is crucial.
What this means for Clarksons
Technology is at the heart of our strategy and we continue to scale up investment in digital solutions and data across our business lines, including AI. Our Digital Transformation team is implementing strategic tools for our Broking business, streamlining processes and providing tools for trade that differentiate us from competitors and deliver value, speed, accuracy and next-level insight. Our Research division continues to use and develop technology to generate and provide its leading proprietary data and intelligence. And our dedicated Technology unit has built an integrated chartering ecosystem – streamlining workflows, digitalising freight and enabling smarter decisions. Our harnessing of technology continues to transform our business, augmenting the ability of our expert teams to provide trusted solutions for our industry.
16%
Estimated share of global population using generative AI tools in the second half of 2025¹
1Source: Microsoft
0.1%-0.8%
Potential uplift to annual global economic growth in the medium-term from rapid adoption of AI²
2Source: IMF
28bn
Rows of data managed by Clarksons Research
Explore more of the 2025 Annual Report
Chair's review 2025
As I reflect on 2025, it is clear that this has been a year defined by extraordinary geo-political and economic complexity. The global business environment was shaped by heightened uncertainty, with the first half of the year marked by significant political shifts, escalating tariff regimes, and the increase in use of sanctions by government authorities. These dynamics created a period of significantly reduced activity across many industries, with companies facing unprecedented challenges in decision making and market engagement.
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CEO's review 2025
2025 was a year that tested the resilience and adaptability of the global shipping industry like few before it. I am immensely proud of, and deeply grateful to, my colleagues across the world for their unwavering commitment and exceptional contributions during a period of extraordinary complexity and, accordingly, opportunity.
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Financial review 2025
As I present the Financial review to shareholders for the final time, I would like to express my gratitude to all the outstanding colleagues I have had the pleasure to work alongside over the past two decades. I am equally grateful to the Board and to our shareholders for their trust and support throughout my tenure. It has been a privilege to serve as CFO since 2006, and to contribute to the Group’s evolution into the market-leading business it is today.
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