Ship acquisition of shipping companies by sale & purchase activities for sustainable growth: Exploratory fuzzy-AHP application

Strengthening sale and purchase (S & P) capacity has become a fundamental requirement for sustainable growth and corporate competitiveness in the modern shipping market. However, there is a lack of research related to S & P and its priority when shipping companies attempt to implement ship acquisition through S & P activities. To fill this gap, this paper conducts an empirical analysis to analyze priority factors during the acquisition of second-hand ships from the perspective of shipping companies. Business criteria are considered to be the most important factors in the analysis of the priority of ship acquisition and investment in shipping companies. To the best of our knowledge, this research is the first exploration covering Korean shipping companies' ship acquisition through S & P activities. This study is expected to contribute to the better understanding of the role of S & P in ensuring the sustainability of shipping companies and to provide stakeholders with valuable insights.