131 one! China's shipbuilding industry leads the global market share to a record high.

　　China's shipbuilding industry continues to expand its leading advantage in the global new ship market. In February this year, Chinese shipbuilders secured the top position globally with a market share of 80%, further enhancing their order-taking capabilities in the high-value-added ship segment.

　　According to data released by Clarkson on March 6, the global new ship order volume in February this year was 163 ships totaling 5.21 million corrected gross tons (CGT), a 15% increase compared to 4.52 million CGT in the same period last year, but a 23% decrease compared to 6.76 million CGT in January this year. Among them, Chinese shipbuilders received orders for 131 ships totaling 4.15 million CGT, accounting for 80% of the global market share, ranking first, and setting a new high since 93.67% in August 2024; Korean shipbuilders received orders for 17 ships totaling 570,000 CGT, with a global market share of 11%, ranking second.

　　In January this year, the global new ship order volume was 158 ships totaling 5.61 million CGT, a 27% increase compared to 4.43 million CGT in the same period last year, but a 37% decrease compared to 8.91 million CGT in December last year. Among them, Chinese shipbuilders received orders for 106 ships totaling 3.74 million CGT, maintaining the top position with a 67% global market share; Korean shipbuilders received orders for 26 ships totaling 1.25 million CGT, with a global market share of 22%, ranking second.

　　In February this year, the order volume of the shipbuilding industries of China and South Korea accounted for 91% of the global total, an increase of 2 percentage points compared to January, continuing to show a "two strong contenders" pattern in the global shipbuilding market, with China's order volume being 7.7 times that of South Korea in terms of the number of ships and 3.3 times in terms of CGT.

　　From the order situation of China and South Korea in February this year, Chinese shipbuilders exceeded Korean shipbuilders by 69 percentage points in market share, an increase of 24 percentage points compared to January, continuing to maintain a significant lead.

　　Especially in terms of CGT per ship, South Korea is at 48,000 CGT per ship, while China is at 35,300 CGT per ship. Compared to 47,000 CGT for South Korea and 25,000 CGT for China in 2025, Chinese shipbuilders this year have shown a more rapid momentum in the high-value-added ship segment, indicating that the quality of orders in China's shipbuilding industry is continuously improving.

　　It is understood that last year, the total global new ship orders amounted to 2,036 ships totaling 56.42 million CGT. Among them, Chinese shipbuilders received a total of 1,421 ships totaling 35.37 million CGT, with a market share of 63%, although down from 71% in 2024, still ranking first globally. Korean shipbuilders received 21% of global new ship orders last year, ranking second, with a total of 247 ships totaling 11.60 million CGT. Since April last year, Chinese shipbuilders have consistently ranked first globally in monthly order volume for 11 consecutive months.

　　In January-February this year, the global cumulative new ship order volume was 359 ships totaling 11.97 million CGT, a 29% increase compared to 393 ships totaling 9.30 million CGT in January-February last year. Among them, Chinese shipbuilders received orders for 261 ships totaling 8.69 million CGT, an 80% year-on-year increase, with a market share of 73, ranking first globally; Korean shipbuilders received orders for 50 ships totaling 2.08 million CGT, a 52% year-on-year increase, with a market share of 17%, ranking second.

　　As of the end of February this year, the global order backlog was 183.56 million CGT, an increase of 1.45 million CGT compared to the end of January. Among them, China's backlog of new ship orders reached 114.56 million CGT, an increase of 15.73 million CGT year-on-year, and an increase of 1.22 million CGT month-on-month, continuing to hold the first position with a market share of 62%; South Korea's backlog of new ship orders was 36.47 million CGT, an increase of 160,000 CGT year-on-year, and an increase of 140,000 CGT month-on-month, with a market share of 20%, ranking second.

　　In February this year, new ship prices slightly declined. The Clarkson Newbuilding Price Index was 182.14 points, a decrease of 2.15 points compared to 184.29 points in January, but an increase of about 42% compared to 128.43 points in the same period five years ago.

　　From the perspective of ship types, the price of a 174,000 cubic meter large LNG carrier was $248.5 million, an increase of $500,000 compared to $248 million in January; the price of a Very Large Crude Carrier (VLCC) was $128.5 million, unchanged from January; the price of a 22,000~24,000 TEU ultra-large container ship was $261 million, unchanged from January.