Falling shipbuilding orders

London - Global shipbuilding orders placed in the first half of 2015 totalled only 13.3 million compensated gross tonnes (CGTs), falling by about 51 per cent from 27 million CGTs in the first half of 2014, said British research firm Clarkson Research Services.

South Korean shipyards received shipbuilding orders totalling 5.92 million CGTs in the first half of 2015, accounting for around 45 per cent of the global total and down from 6.16 million CGTs won in the first half of 2014. The decline was due to the weak performance in the shipbuilding market worldwide. China’s new orders totalled 2.56 million CGTs, closely following Japan’s 2.68 million CGTs.