The Korea Trade Insurance Corporation (K-Sure) is providing long-term financing to the global commodity trading company Mercuria to support the payment of charter fees for Korean shipping companies. This initiative aims to encourage the use of domestic shipping firms by Mercuria, thereby increasing their contracts and charter fee revenues.
K-Sure announced on September 22 that it will offer $200 million (approximately 270 billion won) in long-term financing to Mercuria. The company, based in Singapore and Geneva, specializes in trading essential commodities such as crude oil and minerals, and it enters into charter agreements with shipping companies worldwide to ensure stable transportation of these resources.
This financial support is contingent upon Mercuria's continued and enhanced collaboration with Korean shipping companies. Over the past three years, medium-sized Korean shipping firms have accounted for about 15% of the charter fees paid by Mercuria. K-Sure anticipates that an increase in the use of domestic shipping firms by Mercuria will lead to more contract opportunities and charter fee income for these companies.
This support follows a meeting last month where K-Sure President Jang Young-jin visited Mercuria's headquarters to discuss ways to expand cooperation. During his visit to Geneva, Jang met with Mercuria's Chief Financial Officer, Guillaume Vermeersch, to explore strategies for increasing the use of Korean shipping companies.
Jang expressed his satisfaction, stating, "I am pleased that our discussions last month at Mercuria's Geneva office have led to this fruitful outcome. We will continue to identify financial needs for global commodity trading companies to support the shipping industry, a vital national industry that underpins our trade supply chain."
* This article has been translated by AI.
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