Germany's MM Warburg has taken advantage of the booming market to sell ships and strengthen its balance sheet.

Ship sales in the first quarter of the year saw the German bank cut its loan loss provisions by 70%.

The deals will reduce the bank’s non-performing loan ratio to below 3% in the current fiscal year, the company said.

Volumes transacted by its shipping business grew 20% in 2020 compared with the previous year, as the bank continued to do business throughout the pandemic.