Dr Anil Sharma, president and chief executive of cash-buying giant GMS, should not have been smiling at a glittering gala bash recently held in one of Dubai’s swankiest hotels to celebrate the 30th anniversary of the company he founded. This year, the recycling markets have been all but dead.

Sharma’s big smile was due to the success of Lila Global, a shipowning company started as a small sideline business that, over the past two years, has grown into a large, diversified shipping company under the leadership of former Tomini Shipping chief executive Nitin Mehta, who joined as chief operating officer in early 2021.