China's shipbuilding industry retains top spot globally in 2023

This aerial photo taken on Dec. 5, 2023 shows workers working on a container vessel at a shipyard of Jiangsu Yangzi Xinfu Shipbuilding Co., Ltd. in Taixing, east China's Jiangsu Province. (Xinhua/Cai Yang)

BEIJING, Jan. 15 (Xinhua) -- China has maintained its top position in the global shipbuilding market in 2023, with strong growth in both output and new orders, industry data showed on Monday.

The country's shipbuilding output climbed 11.8 percent year on year to 42.32 million deadweight tonnes (dwt) in 2023, accounting for 50.2 percent of the world's total, according to data from the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology.

New orders surged 56.4 percent year on year to 71.2 million dwt, taking up 66.6 percent of the world's total during the period, figures from the ministry showed.

The sector's holding orders totaled 139.39 million dwt at the end of December, expanding 32 percent year on year. The volume represented 55 percent of the global market share.