Brussels: For every €1m contributed to EU GDP by the European shipping industry, another €1.6m is created elsewhere in the European economy, new findings have revealed.
The European shipping industry is estimated to have contributed €147bn to the EU’s GDP in 2013, according an updated Oxford Economics study on the economic value of the EU shipping industry.
EU shipping is far more productive in terms of GDP generated per worker than the EU average, the findings say.
The industry provides jobs to an estimated 2.2m people both onboard vessels and ashore – directly employing more workers than the aviation sector. Between 2004 and 2013, direct employment grew by 25%.
“Europe controls the world’s largest and most innovative fleet of ships,” remarked Patrick Verhoeven, secretary general of the European Community Shipowners’ Association (ECSA), who presented the findings today ahead of the European Shipping Week event in Brussels.
“This very important fact is often overlooked despite the fact that it plays a key role in the economic impact of our industry on the European economy,” Verhoeven said.
Ultimate ownership or control of 40% of the world’s gross tonnage is based in EU member states, and the fleet is growing steadily.
Between 2005 and the start of 2014, the EU-controlled fleet expanded by more than 74% in tonnage, and by 72% in terms of deadweight tonnage, the study has revealed.
