March Global Ship Orders Reach 720,000 CGT... Lose Top Spot to China

[Asia Economy Reporter Park So-yeon] Last month, global ship orders nearly plummeted by 80% compared to a year ago. Due to the impact of the novel coronavirus disease (COVID-19), most orders were placed domestically, with China ranking first in order performance.

According to Clarkson Research, a UK-based shipbuilding and shipping market analysis firm, global ship orders in March amounted to 720,000 CGT (21 vessels), a 77% decrease compared to the previous year (3.15 million CGT). Compared to the previous month’s 570,000 CGT, it increased by 26%.

Among these, China secured 650,000 CGT (17 vessels, 90%), ranking first; South Korea ranked second with 30,000 CGT (1 vessel, 4%); and Japan ranked third with 29,000 CGT (2 vessels, 4%).

South Korea’s order performance for March did not include orders from Hyundai Heavy Industries (1 LPG carrier) and Daewoo Shipbuilding & Marine Engineering (1 VLCC).

For the first quarter cumulative orders by country, China led with 1.51 million CGT (55 vessels, 65%), followed by South Korea with 360,000 CGT (13 vessels, 16%), and Japan with 180,000 CGT (12 vessels, 8%).

Most of the ships ordered by China in March (560,000 CGT, 88%) were domestic orders focused on oil tankers and container ships. In contrast, there were no orders for large liquefied natural gas (LNG) carriers, which are the main ship types built by Korean shipyards.

It is expected that orders for Korean shipbuilding will increase once large-scale LNG project orders from Qatar, Mozambique, and others begin in earnest.

An industry insider evaluated, "The absolute order volume is too small, so the rankings between countries do not hold much significance."

At the end of March, the global order backlog was recorded at 73.3 million CGT, down 1.04 million CGT from the previous month. China saw a slight increase of 110,000 CGT, while Japan and South Korea experienced decreases of 550,000 CGT and 440,000 CGT, respectively.

The newbuilding price index, which can gauge profitability, remained at 129 points, the same as last month.

Looking at price trends by ship type, LNG carriers (174,000 ㎥) maintained a price of $186 million, while medium to large oil tankers (S-max, A-max) held steady at $61.5 million and $48.5 million, respectively. Large container ships (20,000 to 22,000 TEU) slightly decreased from $146 million to $145.5 million, ultra-large crude carriers (VLCC) dropped from $92 million to $91.5 million, and bulk carriers (Capesize) fell slightly from $49.5 million to $49 million.

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