Korea Tops Shipbuilding Orders for 2 Consecutive Years Last Year... China Overtakes in Second Half

[Image source=Yonhap News]

[Asia Economy Reporter Moon Chaeseok] South Korea's shipbuilding orders have ranked first for two consecutive years.

The Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy announced on the 6th, citing the British shipbuilding and shipping analysis firm Clarkson Research, that last year, South Korea secured 9.43 million CGT (Compensated Gross Tonnage) out of the global ship orders totaling 25.29 million CGT, accounting for 37.3%, ranking first in the world.

In the first half of last year, South Korea's order volume was 3.58 million CGT, which was less than China's 4.68 million CGT, but orders increased intensively in the second half, allowing South Korea to surpass China for two consecutive years and maintain the top position. The second half order volumes were 5.85 million CGT for South Korea and 3.87 million CGT for China.

In particular, in December last year, South Korea secured all 11 orders of large liquefied natural gas (LNG) carriers worldwide, accounting for 1.74 million CGT, or 56.7%, of the global orders of 3.07 million CGT for these vessels.

By ship type, South Korea secured 48 out of 51 large LNG carriers, 18 out of 31 Very Large Crude Carriers (VLCC), and 22 out of 36 Ultra Large Container Ships, demonstrating a competitive edge in high value-added ship types.

Last year's shipbuilding output was 9.51 million CGT, a 23.1% increase compared to the previous year.

The output had fallen to a record low of 7.72 million CGT in 2018 due to the 2016 order cliff but gradually recovered from the second quarter of last year as orders increased again.

Employment in the shipbuilding industry shows a similar trend to the output.

After hitting a low of 105,000 workers in August 2018, the number recovered to the 110,000 range in July last year and has been steadily increasing.

An official from the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy evaluated, "Despite sluggish global orders due to increased uncertainty from the prolonged US-China trade dispute, we achieved results based on the technology and quality demonstrated in key ship types such as LNG carriers and VLCCs."

Clarkson forecasted that global orders will significantly increase to 38.5 million CGT this year, with large-scale projects planned in Russia, Qatar, Mozambique, and others.

The Ministry plans to continue supporting the domestic shipbuilding industry to secure future competitiveness by responding to the paradigm shift toward eco-friendly and smart shipbuilding, maintaining leadership in future markets through autonomous ships, eco-friendly vessels, and smart Korean-style yards.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.