Deputy chairman in the previous term, Kingsley Koo from Valles Steamship was elected chairman, taking over from Island Navigation’s Alan Tung, who had been chairman since 2011.
The AGM also saw the rise of the new generation of Hong Kong shipowning families to prominence. Perhaps the best representation of this was in the election of Wah Kwong Shipping chairman Sabrina Chao as deputy chairman.
While references to the poor health of the markets could not be avoided in both the outgoing chairman’s report and the incoming chairman’s speech, the positive optimism of the association and the owners it represents remains. “Owners will need to deleverage, further tighten its belt, and practice greater investment discipline. There is no doubt that the industry will successfully adjust to new realities. It has done so time and again,” concluded Tung in his chairman’s report.
In the association’s annual review managing director Arthur Bowring highlighted the way the association has been able to raise the profile of Hong Kong’s shipping industry through its participation in international forums.
“The association is now well recognised in international forums to be willing to participate, willing to step up to the mark and willing to put forward technically competent and strong views that might initially be seen as controversial, but always remaining willing to listen to others and find compromise and consensus to suit all sectors of the industry,” Bowring said.
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