Maritime fundamentals remain strong despite US tariffs: Synergy Marine CEO

Business Standard

25-04-2025

US reciprocal tariffs may cause friction in the short term for the maritime sector but over the long term, India's fundamentals remain strong, says Synergy Marine Group CEO.
US President Donald Trump on April 2 imposed reciprocal tariffs on around 60 countries, including India, disrupting global trade. The US later suspended reciprocal tariffs until July 9 but has imposed base import tariffs of 10 per cent on all countries.
On the likely impact of US reciprocal tariffs and trade uncertainty on the Indian shipping industry, Synergy Marine Group CEO Jesper Kristensen said, In the short term, they (tariff actions) may cause friction.
Over the long term, India's fundamentals remain strong. The country's expanding port capacity, growing export base, and skilled workforce make it a resilient and adaptive player in global shipping, Kristensen added.
Synergy Marine Group is a global ship management company.
When asked about the impact of trade uncertainty on jobs in the shipping sector, Kristensen said that demand for multi-disciplinary maritime professionals is rising, not falling.
"Driven by digitalisation, decarbonisation, and regulation, shipping is transitioning toward skills-based hiring. Demand for multi-disciplinary maritime professionals is rising, not falling.
Our hiring outlook remains strong and forward-leaning. Synergy currently employs over 28,000 seafarers worldwide 70 per cent of whom are Indians. In the current fiscal year, we expect this proportion to increase further, in line with fleet expansion and the growing demand from shipowners for highly skilled Indian officers and crew, he said.
Synergy also has a significant shore-based presence, employing around 3,000 professionals across offices in seven cities in India.
We anticipate an 8 per cent increase in shore-based hiring this year, particularly in technical management, data analytics, crewing, and digital innovation rolesreflecting both our continued growth and the evolving expectations of shipowners globally, Kristensen said.
On future outlook, Kristensen said that the group is focusing on expanding its global footprint through selective new partnerships west of Suez, while further deepening long-standing relationships in Japanits largest and most strategically significant market over the next three years.
We are also progressing into the offshore segment through our joint venture with EDT Offshore, marking a deliberate move into technically demanding and safety-critical operations that are central to the energy transition, he added.