China Shipbuilders Woeful, Many Face Uncertain Future

Many Chinese shipbuilders flounder in the face of a declining world shipping slowdown according to the latest industry reports.

Production at Chinese yards, the world's biggest shipbuilders by tonnage, declined steeply during the first three quarters of the year, reports 'China Daily'.

During the period, finished capacity dropped by 18.5 percent from last year to 41.58 million deadweight tons, and new orders decreased by 46.9 percent year-on-year to 15.41 million deadweight tons, according to the latest data recently released by the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology.

In the meantime, Chinese yards' order book stood at 121 million deadweight tons by the end of September, down 19.4 percent from the amount at the end of 2011.

Industry analysts blamed the industry woes on a glut of vessels, rising oil and other costs as well as uncertainties in world economic growth caused by Europe's debt troubles and China's economic slowdown.

Tan Zuojun, former general manager of the China State Shipbuilding Corp, another large State-owned shipbuilder, estimated that at least half of China's more than 3,400 shipyards will go bankrupt within the next three years.

Some industry analysts were alos pessimistic about China's shipbuilding industry prospects, saying that only 300 of the biggest yards in the country will still be operating when the market starts to improve.

Source: China Daily