Ships under construction berth in a dock of a local shipbuilding company in Rongcheng, East China's Shandong Province on May 25, 2023. Photo: VCG

China's shipbuilding industry has taken the lead in three major indicators among global competitors in the first half of 2023, according to China's Ministry of Industry and Information Technology (MIIT) on Wednesday.

From January to June, China's ship completion reached a record of 21.13 million tons, representing a 14.2 percent increase year-on-year. The volume of newly received orders and the volume of orders on hand reached 37.67 million tons, showing a significant increase of 67.7 percent year-on-year.

By the end of June, the volume of orders on hand reached 123.77 million tons, marking a 20.5 percent year-on-year increase, with 92.8 percent of these orders being for export.

The industry data positions China as the only country experiencing growth in all three major indicators, as reported by China Media Group (CMG).

During the first six months, the production capacity of the Chinese shipbuilding industry dominated the global market share, with the ship completion amount, volume of newly received orders, and volume of orders on hand accounting for 49.6 percent, 72.6 percent, and 53.2 percent, respectively.

In addition, the increasing number of ships with high technology and high value-added demonstrates an upgrade in the order structure across the Chinese shipbuilding industry. In the first half of this year, the Chinese shipbuilding industry generated over 150 billion yuan ($20.92 billion) in income with a profit rate of 4.1 percent, reaching a new high in the past decade, according to CMG's report.

Global Times