KMI and Shipowners’ Association Seek Shipping Finance Solutions... "Laying the Groundwork for Overcoming Uncertainties and Enhancing Competitiveness"

Directions for Eco-Friendly Transition, Support for Small Shipping Companies, and Expansion of Private Finance Presented at the First Half Forum

The Korea Maritime Institute (KMI, President Jounghee Cho) and the Korea Shipowners’ Association (KSA, Chairman Park Jeongseok) held the "2026 First Half Shipping Finance Forum" on March 20 at the KSA main conference room in Seoul.

The forum was organized to analyze the shipping market trends and seek financial support strategies to ensure stable operations and enhance competitiveness of the industry, amid increasing internal and external uncertainties such as the global economic slowdown, expansion of protectionism, and rising geopolitical risks in the Middle East.

Sujin Hwang, Director at the Korea Maritime Institute, was the first to present and identified economic slowdown, the spread of protectionism, and Middle East risks as key factors. She emphasized the need to establish new shipping finance policies and effective support mechanisms to address these challenges.

Next, Kim Jeongrae, Head of the Marine Fund Team at Korea Development Bank, introduced the "SOS Fund (KDB Smart Ocean Shipping Fund)," which amounts to a total of 1.4 billion dollars. This comprehensive program supports the construction and retrofitting of eco-friendly and smart vessels, and the introduction of ship operating leases. It aims to reduce the initial investment burden for small and mid-sized shipping companies and to promote the transition to eco-friendly fleets.

Ho Hyejeong, Deputy Director at Korea Ocean Business Corporation, presented the "Special Support Program for Small Shipping Companies," designed to help small operators struggling with rising ship prices, interest rate fluctuations, and tighter environmental regulations. The program combines financial and non-financial support to improve access to finance for small and coastal shipping companies, and to enhance their management and regulatory response capabilities.

Lastly, Jo Yoonjoo, Head of the Marine Finance Department at Busan Bank, addressed the topic of "Strategies to Activate Marine Finance and Private Finance," highlighting the structural limitations of the domestic ship finance market and stressing the need to expand private sector financing. She also suggested the importance of dividing roles and strengthening cooperation between policy and private finance, as well as reinforcing relationship-based ship finance.

The subsequent panel discussion focused on responses to external risks such as the transition to eco-friendly operations and supply chain crises, strategies for vitalizing private finance, and the structural limitations between policy and private finance. Participants agreed that shipping finance is a core foundation that determines the competitiveness of the industry, beyond simply responding to crises.

Jounghee Cho, President of the Korea Maritime Institute, stated, "I hope this forum will be an opportunity to resolve uncertainties surrounding the shipping industry," adding, "Based on the insights gained, we will continue to expand policy research and support to ensure stable operations and strengthen the industry’s future competitiveness."

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.