2020 Cyprus Country Report
The 2020 Cyprus Country Report features in-depth articles on the economy, foreign direct investment, international trade and headquartering as well as detailed sector profiles and insights from Cyprus’ 100 most influential political, economic and business leaders shaping the future of their country and its industries.
The 2020 Cyprus Country Report features in-depth articles on the economy, foreign direct investment, international trade and headquartering as well as detailed sector profiles and insights from Cyprus’ 100 most influential political, economic and business leaders shaping the future of their country and its industries.
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Maritime & Shipping<br />
Sector Profile<br />
NAVIGATING<br />
HIGH SEAS<br />
A global success story for decades, the <strong>Cyprus</strong> shipping industry<br />
continues to stay focused and strong in the face of unprecedented<br />
challenges to global shipping due to the Coronavirus pandemic.<br />
Shipping is historically one of the<br />
most successful industries in <strong>Cyprus</strong>.<br />
The vibrant and resilient sector is the<br />
longest-serving generator of foreign<br />
direct investment and is primed for<br />
further growth. The country’s maritime<br />
industry contributes more than<br />
€1 billion to the economy annually,<br />
which translates to over 7% of GDP, a far higher<br />
figure than in other countries engaged in merchant<br />
shipping. Of this figure, shipmanagement<br />
alone accounts for 5%.<br />
<strong>Cyprus</strong> has the third largest merchant fleet<br />
in Europe and the 11 th largest in the world, the<br />
country is also the EU’s largest shipmanagement<br />
centre and amongst the top three in the<br />
world. With a sovereign flag of excellent quality,<br />
the country has become a preferred base for<br />
global shipping operations. Companies present<br />
in <strong>Cyprus</strong> today are some of the largest of their<br />
kind in the world and manage around 20% of the<br />
world’s third-party managed fleet, and the sector<br />
employs around 3% of <strong>Cyprus</strong>’ workforce.<br />
The country’s Shipping Deputy Ministry has<br />
had two years of successful operation since its<br />
inception in 2018, implementing new supportive<br />
measures and flexible mechanisms to upgrade<br />
<strong>Cyprus</strong>’ status as one of the most formidable maritime<br />
centres worldwide. A recent example was<br />
the reapproval of the specialised <strong>Cyprus</strong> Shipping<br />
Taxation System by the European Union, which<br />
was also unanimously approved locally by the<br />
House plenum in April <strong>2020</strong>. This ensures the<br />
sustainability of the country’s shipping industry<br />
for the next decade – a factor crucial for the<br />
<strong>Cyprus</strong> economy. Also in <strong>2020</strong>, <strong>Cyprus</strong> cemented<br />
its position on the Paris and Tokyo MoU ‘white<br />
lists’ in relation to the safety performance of flag<br />
administrations and joined the United States<br />
Coast Guard’s Qualship 21 list, which recognises<br />
the top performing flag states based on port state<br />
control performance.<br />
KEY<br />
contacts<br />
Shipping Deputy Ministry<br />
www.shipping.gov.cy<br />
<strong>Cyprus</strong> Shipping Chamber<br />
www.csc-cy.org<br />
<strong>Cyprus</strong> Union of Shipowners<br />
www.cus.com.cy<br />
116 <strong>Country</strong> <strong>Report</strong> CYPRUS <strong>2020</strong>