China Secures Over 70% of Global Ship Orders | Numbers Speak China

Chongqing - China's shipbuilding export value continues to grow, with more than 70 percent of global new shipbuilding orders going to Chinese shipyards, according to the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology (MIIT) on Tuesday.

Simultaneously, ship exports in the first half of the year increased by 91.1 percent year-on-year, the highest growth rate among key export commodities, according to Friday’s General Administration of Customs data.

With the export surge, some shipbuilding companies have orders booked through the end of 2027 and even into 2028.

According to the China Association of the National Shipbuilding Industry, in 2023, China ranked first globally in new orders for 14 out of 18 major ship types. Specifically, new orders for bulk carriers, oil tankers, container ships, and car carriers accounted for 79.6 percent, 72.1 percent, 47.8 percent, and 82.7 percent of the global total, respectively.

In the first half of 2024, China's shipbuilding industry continued to lead globally with steady growth in three key metrics.

According to Tuesday’s data from the MIIT, China completed 25.02 million deadweight tons (DWT) of shipbuilding, an 18.4 percent year-on-year increase. New orders amounted to 54.22 million DWT, up 43.9 percent year-on-year. As of the end of June, the order book stood at 171.55 million DWT, a 38.6 percent year-on-year increase. These three metrics account for 55 percent, 74.7 percent, and 58.9 percent of the global market share, respectively.

In April, China State Shipbuilding Corporation (CSSC) secured the world's largest single shipbuilding order, constructing 18 ultra-large liquefied natural gas (LNG) transport ships, each with a payload capacity of 271,000 cubic meters, for Qatar.

Meanwhile, China's second domestically-built large cruise ship entered a shipyard in the same month for final assembly, signifying that China has developed the capability to engage in bulk production of cruise ships.

Luo Zhiheng, chief economist at Yuekai Securities, attributed the strong ship export performance to a rebound in global shipping and increased demand for new, environment-friendly vessels. He highlighted three factors: the peak period for ship replacement, the accelerated need for green and low-carbon ships, and the Red Sea crisis increasing rerouting demands and consuming idle capacity, the media portal chinanews.com reported.

Wen Bin, chief economist at China Minsheng Bank, noted that as the global economy recovers, the strong demand in the shipping market is driving a steady growth in global demand for new ships. As the world's largest exporter of bulk carriers, tankers, and car carriers, China has seen its outstanding ship orders continuously hit new highs. Consequently, amid the market recovery, China's ship exports stand out.

The robust growth of the shipbuilding industry relies on a strong and comprehensive industrial chain. In recent years, China's shipbuilding industry has established a complete system integrating research and development, design, construction, support, and services. It has continuously promoted technological innovation and trained a large number of skilled workers.

China's current shipbuilding quotes and costs are relatively advantageous compared to Japan and South Korea, making Chinese shipbuilding highly attractive to the international market due to its high cost-effectiveness.

Considering the typical shipbuilding cycle of 10-24 months, Wen believed that China's ship exports are expected to maintain high growth throughout the year.

Green transformation

(Qi Xiaofang, as an intern, also contributed to this report.)