China has overtaken Japan as the country with the world's highest national fleet value, according to VesselsValue.

The Chinese-owned fleet is worth $191bn, the ship valuation company said, due mainly to the impact of the boxship boom on containership values.

"China owns the largest number of containers and, consequently, the recent surge in rates and values has moved them up the ranks to top spot in terms of fleet value," said VesselsValue cargo analyst Olivia Watkins.