South Korea's Shipbuilding Tops Global Orders in July... Effect of LNG Carrier Order Resumption

Korea Accounts for Over Two-Thirds of Global Orders in July... First Place in Orders This Year
Global Ship Orders Down 60% Year-to-Date in July... Order Drought Continues
Market Recovery Expected with Large LNG Ship Orders

[Asia Economy Reporter Hwang Yoon-joo] The Korean shipbuilding industry surpassed China to take the top spot in global ship orders in July this year. This is the first time this year that Korea has recorded the highest order volume.

According to Clarkson Research, a UK-based shipbuilding and shipping market analysis firm, Korea secured 500,000 CGT (12 vessels, 74%) out of the global ship orders totaling 680,000 CGT (24 vessels) in July, ranking first. China followed with 140,000 CGT (8 vessels, 21%), and Japan with 30,000 CGT (1 vessel, 4%).

Looking at the cumulative orders as of July, China maintained the top position with 3.74 million CGT (164 vessels, 57%), followed by Korea with 1.68 million CGT (49 vessels, 25%) and Japan with 680,000 CGT (43 vessels, 10%).

The cumulative order volume for July over the past three years has been steadily decreasing, with this year’s volume only about 40% of last year’s. It recorded 21.18 million CGT in 2018, 15.73 million CGT (26%↓) in 2019, and 6.61 million CGT (58%↓) in 2020.

Clarkson Research analyzed that the limited order volume this year is due to "a decline in shipping companies' investment sentiment caused by the coronavirus and intensified wait-and-see attitudes following the implementation of the IMO 2020 sulfur oxide emission regulations."

However, in July, Korea secured orders for four LNG carriers, and the order volume in the second half of the year is expected to gradually recover, centered on LNG carriers. Additionally, large-scale LNG carrier orders are scheduled soon from Mozambique, Russia, and other regions, which is expected to boost orders mainly for Korea and lead to market recovery.

By ship type, orders for A-Max and S-Max class oil tankers and container ships slightly decreased, while orders for ultra-large crude carriers (VLCC), bulk carriers, and large LNG carriers (over 140,000㎥) significantly declined.

At the end of July, the global order backlog slightly decreased by 980,000 CGT (1%↓) compared to the end of June, totaling 69.57 million CGT. China (470,000 CGT↓, 2%↓), Korea (340,000 CGT↓, 2%↓), and Japan (130,000 CGT↓, 1%↓) all saw decreases.

Compared to the same period last year, Japan decreased by 5.2 million CGT (35%↓), China by 3.12 million CGT (11%↓), and Korea by 1.72 million CGT (8%↓). By country, China had the largest order backlog with 25.64 million CGT (37%), followed by Korea with 19.14 million CGT (28%) and Japan with 9.46 million CGT (14%).

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