The Korean shipbuilding industry surpassed China and achieved the world’s first place in ship orders this year for three consecutive years. Despite the severe drought in the first half of the year, it succeeded in a dramatic reversal by sweeping orders for high value-added vessels such as liquefied natural gas (LNG) ships in the second half.
According to industry sources on the 27th, domestic’Shipbuilding Big 3’including Hyundai Heavy Industries Group, Daewoo Shipbuilding & Marine Engineering, and Samsung Heavy Industries has won orders for 85 vessels worth $11.3 billion (about 12.500 billion won) since last month. It is equivalent to the export of about 400,000 medium-sized cars. During this period, more than 70% of global ship orders were captured. The explosive increase in ship orders at the end of the year is because overseas shipping companies are pouring out orders as the volume of cargo, which had slowed down in the aftermath of the novel coronavirus infection (Corona 19) in the first half, surged in the second half.
It has also retaken the world’s No. 1 position that was lost to China. According to Clarkson Research, a global research institute, ship orders for this year were 72.3 million CGT in China (standard cargo ship equivalent tonnage), 6.61 million CGT in Korea, and 1.38 million CGT in Japan as of the 21st. The reversal is certain when Korea has won at least 1.5 million CGT orders including 17 LNG carriers three days after the 21st. During this period, China failed to win orders for a single LNG carrier. Until the first half of the year, China won an order of 3.15 million CGT, widening the gap with Korea (118 CGT) more than doubled, but domestic shipbuilders showed their back feeling and succeeded in reversing.
The shipbuilding industry expects the order rally to continue next year. An industry insider said, “The container freight rate index has hit a record high, and there is a continuing shortage of ships.
Reporter Mansoo Choi [email protected]
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