Chinese shipyards captured 72 percent of global newbuilding orders in the first half of 2026, booking 31.00 million compensated gross tons across 1,131 vessels, more than double their intake a year earlier, according to Clarksons Research figures reported by The Maritime Executive on July 8. The wider market expanded too: global contracting reached 42.95 million CGT and 1,481 ships, up 66 percent from 25.90 million CGT and 1,101 vessels in the first half of 2025, PortNews reported on July 6.
The result extends China's market majority to a fourth consecutive year, and the raw tonnage will dominate the commentary. It should not obscure the second race running underneath it. Korean yards lifted their own intake 60 percent to 7.97 million CGT across 195 ships, a 19 percent share by volume, and filled that book almost entirely with gas carriers and other high-value tonnage. The two shipbuilding powers are increasingly selling different products to different buyers.
The volume race
June kept the pattern intact. Global ordering of 5.25 million CGT across 200 ships came in 9 percent below May but 3 percent above June 2025, and China took 4.45 million CGT and 171 vessels of it, an 85 percent monthly share. Korean yards booked 0.50 million CGT across 13 ships, or 9 percent. The global backlog closed June at 206.59 million CGT, up 2.14 million on the month, with China holding 134.03 million CGT, some 65 percent, and Korea 38.81 million CGT, around 19 percent, on the Clarksons count.
No single owner illustrates how the 72 percent came about better than MSC. The container line's orderbook stands at 128 ships in the same Clarksons-based coverage, every one of them placed at a Chinese yard. Chinese intake continues to skew toward lower-complexity segments, where price and berth availability decide the contract and where Korean builders have largely stopped competing.
Korea is selling value, not tonnage
The Korean counterpoint reads better in dollars than in CGT. HD Korea Shipbuilding and Offshore Engineering had secured $16.39 billion across 142 vessels by July 13, or 70.3 percent of its $23.31 billion annual target, and its first-half pace was the fastest since 2008, according to the Seoul Economic Daily. A sixth consecutive year above the annual target now looks probable.
The July run shows the mix behind that number. On July 10 the group signed a 545.6 billion won contract, about $362.3 million, for three very large ammonia carriers ordered by an unnamed European owner, to be built at HD Hyundai Samho and delivered through the first half of 2030. A day earlier it booked 469.9 billion won, about $311.2 million, for six product carriers for a Middle Eastern client at HD Hyundai Heavy Industries, delivering by the first half of 2029, Korea JoongAng Daily reported.
Across the 142 vessels signed this year, 43 are LPG, ammonia or liquefied CO2 carriers and 17 are LNG carriers, against 28 containerships, 39 petrochemical product carriers, 11 crude tankers, two car carriers and two specialized units, an icebreaker and an FSRU. Korean builders hold roughly two thirds of the global LNG carrier orderbook, according to Wood Mackenzie, and that is where the margin lives.
Prices are holding for both sides
Neither camp is discounting. The Clarksons Newbuilding Price Index edged up to 185.15 at the end of June from 185.01 a month earlier, roughly 33 percent above its June 2021 level. With backlogs stretching years out, Chinese and Korean yards alike are selling 2029 and 2030 delivery berths from a position of strength. US Section 301 measures aimed at Chinese-built tonnage are meanwhile nudging some owners toward Korean berths, adding a policy floor under Korean pricing even as China absorbs the volume.
What to watch
The divergence holds only while each side stays out of the other's lane. Three signals would mark a shift: any erosion of Korea's two-thirds grip on the LNG orderbook as Chinese yards push upmarket, whether China's 85 percent June share carries into the third quarter, and whether the price index stays above 185 once the most attractive 2029 berths are sold through. The ammonia bet deserves its own line of tracking. The 43 gas carriers in HD KSOE's book this year represent real capital committed to a fuel chain that does not yet exist at commercial scale; if that chain materializes on schedule, the value race, not the volume race, will have been the one that mattered.
As Editor in Chief of The Maritime, I lead content development, interviews, and digital storytelling across our multimedia maritime platform. With over 10 years of experience in the maritime industry, I create and publish in-depth stories and video features that highlight key players, emerging trends, and operational realities across global shipping. Before launching The Maritime, I worked as a Vessel Operator at Imza Marine A.S., gaining hands-on commercial shipping and voyage operations experience. I also served as Marketing Communications Specialist at Gimas Ship Supply & Services, where I managed corporate communication, digital strategy, and industry outreach for shipowners and maritime clients. I hold a Master’s degree in Maritime Transportation Management from Istanbul Technical University and a Master’s degree in Publishing from Marmara University. My work is driven by the belief that the maritime world deserves strong, informed, and accessible media representation. I am committed to sharing the stories of maritime professionals and contributing to the sector’s visibility, knowledge exchange, and future development.
