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

The three major indicators of China's shipbuilding industry all ranked first in the global market from January to July, according to the China Association of the National Shipbuilding Industry. 

China has maintained the leading position in global shipbuilding market. From January to July this year, Chinese ships completions mounted to 24.09 million deadweight tons (dwt), up 15.6 percent year-on-year. The new orders reached 44.76 million dwt, up 74 percent year-on-year, and the volume of orders on hand reached 127.9 million dwt, up by 23.4 percent year-on-year, according to figures from the association.

From January to July this year, the output value of 74 leading Chinese shipbuilding enterprises totaled 283.3 billion yuan ($38.87 billion), a year-on-year increase of 27.3 percent.

In terms of revised gross tonnage, China's shipbuilding completions accounted for 45.5 percent of the global market share, while new orders accounted for 62.7 percent, and orders on hand accounted for 47.3 percent, according to the association.

China's shipbuilding sector took the lead in the three indicators among global competitors in the first half of 2023, China's Ministry of Industry and Information Technology said in July.

China's first domestically built large cruise liner Adora Magic City completed its first sea trial, which lasted for eight days, and docked at Shanghai on July 24.

The cruise ship, measuring 323.6 meters in length and 37.2 meters in width, has 2,826 cabins. Final ship delivery is scheduled for the end of 2023.

Large cruise ships are among the "crown jewels" of the global shipbuilding industry, along with aircraft carriers and large liquefied natural gas tankers. After the ship is delivered, China will become the fifth country able to build large cruise ships after Germany, France, Italy and Finland.

China has overtaken Greece as the world's largest maritime fleet owner in terms of gross tonnage, global shipping information provider Clarksons Research said on August 12.

Analysts said China's position as the world's top manufacturing hub, coupled with resilient cargo trade and strong financial support for shipbuilding, has helped propel the sector to be a global frontrunner.

Global Times