Top 10 Shipping Companies by Market Cap

Maritime shipping is still the quiet giant of globalization. Somewhere far from the headlines, container stacks taller than city blocks glide past coastlines, carrying everything from iPhones and furniture to grain and auto parts. Around 80% of the volume of international trade in goods is carried by sea, and the share is even higher for many developing economies.

After the COVID boom and bust in freight rates, war in Ukraine, Red Sea disruptions, and tariff-driven trade tensions, the shipping industry is back in a more “normal” but very fragile growth phase. UN Trade and Development (UNCTAD) estimates that global maritime trade reached about 12.3 billion tons in 2023 and about 12.7 billion tons in 2024, but growth is expected to slow sharply to just 0.5% in 2025 before stabilizing around 2% annually.

Behind these massive flows stand a relatively small number of ocean carriers that dominate global trade lanes. This article looks at the top 10 listed shipping companies in the world ranked by market capitalization, and how they shape global trade and logistics.

Methodology: why “by market cap” – and who’s missing?

For this ranking, we use market capitalization in US dollars as of 6 January 2026, based mainly on the “Largest Maritime Transportation Companies by Market Cap” dataset from CompaniesMarketCap.com.

This gives us a consistent, finance-oriented view of the sector:

• What we measure:

  • Global, listed maritime transportation companies whose core business is ocean shipping (container, tanker, bulk, or multi-purpose fleets).

  • Market cap in USD, rounded.

• What we don’t capture directly:

  • Private giants like MSC (Mediterranean Shipping Company) and CMA CGM, which are enormous in container capacity but not publicly listed, so they have no transparent market cap. According to Alphaliner-based rankings, MSC is the largest container carrier by capacity, ahead of Maersk and CMA CGM.

  • Port operators only, or land-focused logistics groups without significant blue-water fleets.

So the ranking below reflects how public markets value shipping companies given their fleets, earnings power, and strategic position, rather than who moves the most boxes.

Table 1 – Top 10 shipping companies by market cap (early 2026)

Source: CompaniesMarketCap – “Largest Maritime Transportation Companies by Market Cap”, USD view, accessed 6 January 2026.

Note: Market caps rounded to one decimal place and will fluctuate with equity markets.

Already from this table, some themes stand out:

• The list is Asia-heavy: COSCO, Evergreen, HMM, OOIL, MOL, COSCO Energy and SITC are all Asian, with only Maersk, Hapag-Lloyd and (to an extent) NYK adding European flavor.

• Several are hybrids: they earn money from tankers, LNG, car carriers and bulk as well as containers (NYK, MOL, COSCO Energy).

• Many are deeply embedded in alliances and joint ventures, particularly Ocean Network Express (ONE) and the new Gemini cooperation between Maersk and Hapag-Lloyd.

To understand their real footprint on global trade, we must also look at fleet capacity and trade coverage — so we’ll come back to that in Table 2. First, let’s walk through the top 10 one by one.

1. Maersk – from pure ocean carrier to “integrated logistics” giant

Maersk, founded in 1904, is the archetypal blue-hulled container giant. It has long been one of the world’s largest container shipping companies and today positions itself as an “end-to-end” logistics integrator, combining ocean shipping, terminals, warehousing, air freight and supply-chain tech.

Scale and network

• Maersk is currently the second-largest container carrier by capacity, with about 4.54 million TEU of container slots across 672 ships as of March 2025.

• It operates on all major East–West trade lanes (Asia–Europe, Transpacific, Transatlantic) as well as extensive North–South and intra-regional routes.

In collaboration with Hapag-Lloyd, Maersk is establishing the Gemini Cooperation, which will jointly deploy around 340 vessels across seven key trade corridors, seeking higher schedule reliability and better asset utilization.

Strategy: integrating the value chain

Over the last decade, Maersk has:

• Divested or spun off non-core businesses (like oil exploration).

• Acquired logistics firms and tech platforms.

• Promoted a “Maersk as one” offering, where customers can book ocean, inland, customs and value-added services through one platform.

This aligns with a broader industry trend: large carriers want to stop being commoditized “sea trucking” companies and instead become supply-chain orchestrators.

Sustainability and regulation

Maersk is also a high-profile leader on decarbonization, ordering methanol-ready vessels and experimenting with alternative fuels. UNCTAD’s recent reports highlight the pressure on shipping to decarbonize even as trade routes get longer and more volatile.

As the #1 by market cap, Maersk is effectively a bellwether for investors’ view of the entire liner segment: when freight rates surge or crash, Maersk’s share price is often first to react.

2. COSCO Shipping Holdings – Beijing’s global sea arm

COSCO Shipping Holdings is the listed container and logistics arm of China COSCO Shipping Corporation, a state-controlled behemoth created through the 2016 merger of COSCO and China Shipping.

Capacity and reach

As a container carrier, COSCO (including its OOCL subsidiary) is:

• The 4th-largest container line in the world with around 3.35 million TEU of capacity and 519 ships.

• COSCO Shipping Lines alone operated about 445 container vessels with ~2.4 million TEU, and served 255 international routes reaching 356 ports in 105 countries, according to company data.

Through its parent group, COSCO also has:

• Significant stakes in ports (e.g., Piraeus in Greece, terminals in Spain and the Middle East).

• Logistics, leasing, and financial arms that complement ocean shipping.

Why markets value COSCO

COSCO benefits from:

• Scale on Asia–Europe, Transpacific and intra-Asian routes, closely aligned with Chinese trade flows.

• A strong position in Ocean Alliance, alongside CMA CGM and Evergreen, which collectively control a huge share of global container capacity.

• State backing and privileged access to Chinese export volumes.

On the flip side, COSCO is heavily exposed to tariff tensions and geopolitics, which UNCTAD has flagged as key drivers of shipping volatility and longer voyage distances.

3. Hapag-Lloyd – Germany’s container champion

Hapag-Lloyd, dating back to 19th-century German transatlantic lines, is today a pure-play container liner and terminal operator.

Fleet and services

• Roughly 305 modern ships, a vessel capacity of about 2.5 million TEU, and container capacity around 3.8 million TEU.

• About 130 liner services connecting 600+ ports in 140 countries – a very dense global network.

• Ranked 5th globally in container capacity with about 2.35 million TEU and 300 ships in the Alphaliner list.

Financial and strategic shifts

Hapag-Lloyd has moved from a historically cyclical, often struggling carrier to a highly profitable large-cap company during the pandemic freight boom. As the market normalized, earnings have fallen:

• Net profit declined nearly 19% in 2024, and management guided for lower earnings in 2025 amid volatile rates and Red Sea disruptions.

To adapt, Hapag-Lloyd is:

• Tightening cost control.

• Expanding into terminals and inland infrastructure.

• Partnering with Maersk in the Gemini Cooperation, betting that schedule reliability and integrated services can differentiate them even in a low-rate environment.

For investors, Hapag-Lloyd is the clearest pure container bet among the top three by market cap.

4. NYK Line – a diversified shipping conglomerate

Nippon Yusen Kabushiki Kaisha (NYK Line), founded in 1885, is not just a container carrier: it is a comprehensive global logistics and shipping group.

Fleet and business mix

• The NYK Group operated around 824 major ocean vessels at the end of March 2024, including container ships, car carriers, bulk carriers, LNG carriers, oil tankers and more.

• NYK is one of three Japanese parents (with MOL and “K” Line) behind Ocean Network Express (ONE), which is 6th globally in container capacity with roughly 1.98 million TEU and 257 ships.

This means NYK’s exposure to containers is partly indirect – through its equity stake in ONE – while a large share of earnings comes from:

• Automotive logistics (RO/RO car carriers)

• LNG and energy transportation

• Dry bulk (coal, iron ore, grain)

• Air cargo and land logistics

Strategic directions

NYK’s current mid-term plan, branded around “Sail Green, Drive Transformations”, emphasizes:

• Decarbonization (LNG, ammonia, and other alternative fuel vessels).

• Digitalization and logistics solutions beyond pure ship ownership.

For investors, NYK is a diversified shipping platform, less exposed to container-rate cycles alone, but heavily tied to global energy and car markets.

5. Evergreen Marine – Taiwan’s green-hulled container workhorse

Evergreen Marine Corporation is a Taiwanese container carrier known for its bright green ships and global service coverage.

Position in container shipping

• Evergreen is the 7th-largest container line globally, with about 1.79 million TEU of capacity and 225 ships as of March 2025.

• It is a core member of Ocean Alliance, partnering with COSCO, CMA CGM and OOCL.

Evergreen gained public attention during the infamous Suez Canal blockage (Ever Given), but beyond that headline, it is a critical connector on:

• Asia–Europe and Transpacific trunk lines.

• Intra-Asia routes linking East Asia with Southeast Asia and beyond.

Financial and strategic profile

Evergreen is heavily container-focused, with additional revenue from terminal operations and related services. Its earnings surged during the pandemic and then normalized, like its peers, with investors now focusing on:

• Fleet renewal and fuel efficiency.

• Network optimization within Ocean Alliance.

• Exposure to China-related cargo versus diversified trade flows.

6. HMM – South Korea’s national champion

HMM Company Limited, formerly Hyundai Merchant Marine, is South Korea’s primary national container line and a key player on Asia-Europe and Transpacific routes.

Scale and specialization

• HMM ranks 8th globally in container capacity, with around 914,000 TEU and 83 ships.

• It carries a very large share of South Korea’s export cargo, especially after the collapse of Hanjin Shipping.

HMM is also part of the Premier Alliance (with ONE and Yang Ming) in Alphaliner’s grouping.

Strategic angle

HMM’s story is one of restructuring and state support:

• It underwent significant financial restructuring after prolonged losses.

• The Korean government has seen HMM as strategic infrastructure, supporting recapitalization and fleet renewal.

Today, HMM focuses on:

• High-efficiency megaships on Asia–Europe and Transpacific routes.

• Integrated logistics offerings, though not as broad as Maersk’s or COSCO’s.

• Strengthening reliability and environmental performance to remain competitive in alliances.

For investors, HMM offers a levered play on global container cycles with strong Korean export exposure.

7. OOIL / OOCL – Hong Kong link in COSCO’s global chain

Orient Overseas (International) Limited (OOIL) is a Hong Kong-listed holding company whose main operating subsidiary, Orient Overseas Container Line (OOCL), is one of the world’s larger container carriers.

Relationship with COSCO

COSCO Shipping acquired OOIL in 2018, making OOIL part of the COSCO group while leaving it listed. OOCL:

• Operates a modern fleet that the company describes as among the youngest and most fuel-efficient, deployed on hundreds of trade routes worldwide.

• Is a member of Ocean Alliance, integrated operationally with COSCO and Evergreen.

In 2025, OOIL ordered 14 new methanol-ready container vessels worth about US$3.08 billion, to be delivered between 2028 and 2029, underscoring its long-term bet on greener tonnage.

Why OOIL shows up separately in the ranking

Because OOIL is still a distinct listed entity, markets assign it a standalone valuation, even though its parent COSCO Shipping Holdings is also among the top 10. Investors effectively get:

• Exposure to container shipping and logistics under the OOCL brand.

• An indirect proxy for COSCO’s broader strategy, with some corporate governance and dividend specifics unique to OOIL.

8. Mitsui O.S.K. Lines (MOL) – from bulk and LNG to ethane and beyond

Mitsui O.S.K. Lines (MOL) is another Japanese giant with roots in the 19th century. Today it is a global transport conglomerate spanning containers, tankers, bulk, car carriers, LNG and offshore projects.

Fleet and financials

• MOL is often cited as one of the largest tanker owners in the world, with extensive crude, product and LNG fleets.

• For FY2024, it reported revenue around 1.78 trillion yen (≈US$12.5 billion) and net income of roughly 425.5 billion yen (≈US$3.0 billion), highlighting how profitable energy shipping and related services can be.

MOL’s container exposure is largely via its stake in Ocean Network Express (ONE), not directly through MOL-branded containerships.

Strategic moves

Recent trends include:

• A strong push into LNG and alternative fuel shipping.

• A joint venture move into specialized ethane shipping with India’s ONGC, signalling deeper participation in petrochemical feedstock logistics.

• Careful navigation of geopolitical risk, for example continuing operations in the Gulf while avoiding the Red Sea due to security concerns.

Within our top 10, MOL is one of the best examples of energy-heavy maritime portfolios, complementing container-centric peers like Maersk and Hapag-Lloyd.

9. COSCO Shipping Energy Transportation – world’s tanker superpower

While COSCO Shipping Holdings focuses on containers and related logistics, COSCO Shipping Energy Transportation is the group’s oil and energy shipping arm.

Scale in tankers

Company data indicates that as of early 2021 the firm controlled around:

• 176 oil tankers with about 24.8 million deadweight tons (DWT), spanning VLCCs, product tankers and other segments. This fleet is described as world No. 1 in tanker capacity.

Even though the data point is from 2021, COSCO Energy remains widely viewed as one of the largest tanker operators globally, crucial for seaborne crude and refined products from the Middle East, West Africa and elsewhere into China and other markets.

Market role

COSCO Energy’s performance hinges on:

• Oil demand, tanker supply cycles, and freight rates.

• Geopolitical risk (sanctions, war, chokepoints like the Strait of Hormuz).

• Environmental regulation, especially concerning older tonnage and emissions.

Its presence in the top 10 shows that public markets place almost as much value on energy shipping as on containers, even though the latter dominate trade headlines.

10. SITC International – the intra-Asia specialist

SITC International Holdings is a Hong Kong-based shipping and logistics company that has quietly become a giant of intra-Asia container trade.

Network and specialization

SITC focuses on:

• Short-sea and regional container services within Asia, especially between China, Japan, Korea and Southeast Asia.

• As of 2025, the company highlighted 82 service routes, covering 16 countries and regions and serving 82 major ports, supported by integrated logistics, warehousing, depot and freight forwarding services.

This is a very different business model from global trunk lines:

• Voyages are shorter and more frequent.

• Volumes are driven by regional supply chains and near-shoring, not just intercontinental trade.

Yet the market assigns SITC a top-10 valuation because intra-Asia trade is one of the world’s most dynamic trade regions, and SITC is strongly positioned there.

Table 2 – How big are these companies in operational terms?

To complement the market-cap view, here’s a snapshot of operational and fleet metrics for the same top 10, combining Alphaliner capacity data and company disclosures.

Sources:

• Alphaliner-based “List of largest container shipping companies” (Wikipedia, March 2025 snapshot).

• Company profiles and investor factsheets for fleet and network data.

Taken together, these numbers show that market cap and physical capacity are related but not identical. For example:

• MSC is #1 by container capacity but absent here because it’s privately held.

• NYK and MOL sit high in market cap because of their energy and car carrier businesses, even though their container capacity is counted under ONE.

What this ranking tells us about global trade

1. Asia is the gravitational center of ocean shipping

The majority of the top 10 by market cap are Asian:

• China (COSCO Holdings, COSCO Energy)

• Japan (NYK, MOL)

• Taiwan (Evergreen)

• South Korea (HMM)

• Hong Kong–based groups (OOIL, SITC)

This mirrors the underlying reality: Asia is both the world’s factory and its fastest-growing consumer region, so most container and energy flows either originate or terminate there.

2. Containers and energy are both vital – and intertwined

Although this article is framed around “shipping companies”, there are two distinct profit engines:

• Containers (Maersk, COSCO, Hapag-Lloyd, Evergreen, HMM, OOCL, SITC) – highly cyclical, sensitive to consumer demand, retail inventories, and geopolitics.

• Energy & bulk (MOL, NYK, COSCO Energy) – tied more to global energy demand, industrial cycles, and tanker/bulk supply trends.

Several companies deliberately straddle both to smooth earnings and leverage shared capabilities (crew, technical management, financing).

3. Alliances and cooperation shape who controls which trade lanes

If you look at who actually operates on big trade lanes like Asia–Europe or the Transpacific, you mostly see a few alliance brands:

• Ocean Alliance: COSCO, CMA CGM, Evergreen, OOCL.

• Gemini Cooperation (from 2025/26): Maersk + Hapag-Lloyd.

• Premier / ONE ecosystem: ONE (backed by NYK, MOL, “K” Line), HMM, Yang Ming.

These structures are partly a response to antitrust constraints: regulators are wary of too much concentration. For example, Brazil’s audit court recently recommended that Maersk and MSC be excluded from the initial bidding round for a massive new terminal at Santos, to avoid excessive concentration in Latin America’s largest port.

4. Volatility, geopolitics and rerouting are the new normal

UNCTAD’s 2025 Review of Maritime Transport warns that tariffs, wars and chokepoint disruptions are driving unprecedented volatility:

• Growth in seaborne trade is forecast at just 0.5% in 2025, with container trade only slightly higher at 1.4%.

• Average shipping distances have increased as vessels reroute around trouble spots like the Red Sea, making voyages longer and more expensive.

Carriers like Hapag-Lloyd and Maersk openly cite Red Sea attacks and tariff uncertainty as reasons for earnings downgrades and new alliance strategies.

5. Decarbonization is now an investment thesis, not PR

Several companies in the top 10 are making very large, very real bets on greener fleets:

• OOIL/OOCL’s US$3.08bn order for 14 methanol-ready vessels.

• Maersk’s methanol-fuel newbuilds and Hapag-Lloyd’s Ship Green products.

• MOL and NYK’s pivot to LNG, ammonia and CCS-related shipping.

UNCTAD repeatedly stresses that shipping must undergo a “just and equitable transition” to low-carbon fuels, even as fleets age and routes get more complex.

For investors, the question is no longer whether ships decarbonize but how quickly and at whose expense – owners, charterers, or cargo owners.

6. How to interpret market cap in such a cyclical industry

Finally, a word of caution: market cap is a moving target, especially in shipping:

• Freight rates can swing dramatically within months (as seen during COVID and the subsequent downturn).

• Geopolitical shocks can suddenly boost or crush tanker earnings.

• Regulatory changes (e.g., emissions rules, port access restrictions) can favor newer fleets and penalize older ones.

That said, the top 10 by market cap offer a useful map of who public markets believe will dominate ocean trade over the coming decade:

• Maersk and COSCO as integrated global container-logistics ecosystems.

• Hapag-Lloyd and Evergreen as large, agile container specialists.

• NYK and MOL as diversified shipping and energy logistics groups.

• HMM and OOIL as regional powerhouses tightly integrated with alliances.

• COSCO Energy and SITC as focused plays on energy flows and intra-Asian trade.

If you’re analyzing global supply chains, trade policy, or decarbonization, watching how these companies invest, merge, and deploy their fleets gives you an excellent forward-looking indicator of where the world’s goods – and capital – are sailing next.