The COVID-19 pandemic seems to have hit the global economy very hard with people staying indoors to stop the spread of the infection. The cruise shipping industry too has become a casualty with business hit hard as of now. However, with the easing of the lockdown, there is a silver lining to the global shipping industry, especially for the cruise vessels for sale. The year 2021 seems to be promising with a record number of bookings having been reported (for example, the transatlantic sailing, April 2021.) According to Mr. David Crooks, Senior Vice President of product and operations for World Travel Holdings, the year 2021 bodes well for the cruise shipping industry. Does this mean prospective buyers should make a beeline to the ship broking consultants like Norwegian Ship Sales As and enquire about some big-ticket deals? The answer is a resounding YES given the enabling circumstances as stated below:
# Lower cost of ships:
According to estimates, the global cruise industry was poised to carry around 32 million passengers and rake in $71 billion in revenue this year. However, the pandemic has hit hard at the bottom lines of the industry with the above-mentioned revenue expected to be halved by the end of this year (Source: Euromonitor International.) Consequently, the global cruise shipping industry is reeling under severe stress and staring at a possible bankruptcy scenario.
According to the shipping data provider VesselsValue, the global fleet of cruise ships has lost around $4 billion in value at the end of Q1 2020. It is evident that cruise ships, which can cost in excess of $1 billion, are losing value with investors and buyers shunning them amidst the pandemic. As per Bloomberg Analytics, the number of cruise vessels at sea has come down to 77 on April 3 from a healthy count of 169 on January 30. Mr. Cooper, an analyst at VesselsValue, hinted at the possibility of cruise liners taking the leaseback sales route wherein financial leasing companies take ownership of such cruise vessels for sale at lower valuations. Thus, buyers looking at acquiring high speed vessels for sale can take advantage of the prevailing low prices and benefit from the easing of lockdown.
# Likely easing out of the pandemic in 2021:
The looming pandemic is expected to ease out in 2021 with the likely arrival of the vaccine (hopefully.) This will give an impetus to travellers, hitherto forced to lie low, to go for cruise travel with a vengeance. The increase in the number of bookings for popular destinations in the Caribbean (and other places) is testimony to the good days that lie ahead. Yes, the travel protocols might change with more emphasis on maintaining hygiene and social distancing, but the enthusiasm for travel is only expected to grow. For example, according to Global News, the cruise ship bookings for Carnival have seen a quantum jump of 600%. Also, the online cruise marketplace CruiseCompete.com has reported a 40% rise in bookings for 2021 compared to 2019. Further, the Los Angeles Times has quoted a report from UBS, the Swiss banking behemoth, of an upsurge in cruise booking volume to 9% compared to the same period last year.
Conclusion:
The above-mentioned facts point out to the deep impact of the pandemic on the cruise shipping industry. However, the silver lining in 2021 of an expected surge in cruise travel can offset the losses to some extent. Hence, this is the right time to look into the prospect of buying cruise ships for sale. To get insights into the cruise shipping industry (and beyond), reach out to the consultants at https://www.norshipsale.com/ or call +47 6754 1925/+47 9177 6183 or send an email to o.jebsen@norshipsale.no or info@norshipsale.no.
