HONG Kong Shipowners Association has revealed a 17 per cent drop in tonnage despite a rise in the number of ships in the group's fleet.
Association director Michael Farlie said the biggest-ever annual drop in tonnage was due to the change in profile of the fleet.
The annual review of the fleet shows that at the end of December the number of vessels stood at 1,294, up from 1,223 in 1992. Total tonnage dropped to 60.5 million tons from 71 million deadweight tonnes (dwt).
''The explanation of this apparent anomaly is that the type profile of the fleet has changed,'' Mr Farlie said.
Many big-sized ships had been sold and the fleet now includes some 224 coastal and river barges, tugs and ferries, the latter belonging mainly to new members.
Mr Farlie stressed that the important factor, which in time may help to improve the market, had been the deliberate shedding by Hong Kong owners of many old dry-bulk carriers, ore-bulk-oil carriers (OBOs) and tankers.