Korean shipbuilders' global order share rises in first half of the year amid US-China tension

A shipyard of Hanwha Ocean Co. in Geoje, about 330 kilometers southeast of Seoul, July 28 / Yonhap

Korean shipbuilders saw a significant rebound in their global order share in the first half amid U.S. sanctions targeting Chinese rivals, an industry report showed Tuesday.

According to the report from the Export-Import Bank of Korea, South Korea secured 25.1 percent of global shipbuilding orders in terms of compensated gross tons (CGT) during the January-June period.

It marks a substantial rise from 17.2 percent a year earlier, narrowing the gap with leader China from 51 percentage points to 26.7 percentage points.

Last year, South Korea's share of global annual orders stood at 15 percent, the lowest in eight years.

This year's rebound is largely attributed to recent U.S. trade measures. The U.S. Trade Representative (USTR) has introduced a policy to impose port entry fees on Chinese shipping companies and operators of Chinese-built vessels, effectively discouraging reliance on Chinese shipyards.

In the first half of the year, container ships accounted for 53.3 percent of South Korea's total order volume of 4.87 million CGT. Last year, South Korean shipyards secured just two midsize-to-large container ship orders.

"The shift in orders from Chinese to Korean shipbuilders amid U.S. sanctions has contributed to the increase in Korea's global market share," the report said.

Despite the improved performance, the bank stressed the need for South Korea's shipbuilding industry to use this opportunity to enhance its fundamental competitiveness for long-term resilience.