111 ships! Are ship prices still rising? The latest global shipbuilding monthly report is out

The number of newly signed orders decreased by 56 ships month-on-month, with South Korean shipbuilders receiving the most orders and China ranking second.

According to the latest data from Clarkson (as of March 9, 2024), 111 new orders were signed globally in February 2024, totaling 3,674,505 CGT. Compared to 167 new orders totaling 3,540,793 CGT in January 2024, the number decreased by 56 month-on-month, while the corrected gross tonnage increased by 3.78% month-on-month. Compared to 107 new orders totaling 2,913,541 CGT in February 2023, the number increased by 4 year-on-year, and the corrected gross tonnage increased by 26.12% year-on-year.

In terms of ship types, there were 15 bulk carriers (1,963,000 DWT), 27 tankers (6,573,783 DWT), 26 chemical tankers (450,498 DWT), 3 container ships (17,916 TEU), 19 LPG carriers (2,832,000 cubic meters), 18 other vessels (461,347 CGT), and 3 offshore vessels (25,093 CGT). In terms of order types, 8 Capesize bulk carriers, 3 Panamax bulk carriers, and 4 Supramax bulk carriers were newly signed; 18 VLCCs, 4 Suezmax tankers, 3 Aframax tankers, and 2 Handysize tankers were newly signed; 2 Panamax container ships and 1 Handysize container ship were newly signed. In terms of shipyards by country, in February, 111 new ships were ordered globally, totaling 3,674,505 CGT. Chinese shipyards received 68 ships, totaling 1,620,955 CGT; Japanese shipyards received 2 ships, totaling 43,464 CGT; and South Korean shipyards received 29 ships, totaling 1,742,155 CGT. The corrected gross tonnage accounted for 44.11%, 1.18%, and 47.41% of the global new ship orders, respectively.

New ship orders in January-February 2024 totaled 278 ships, with a total of 19,288,056 DWT. Compared with 387 new orders totaling 13,624,202 DWT in the same period of 2023, the number of ships and DWT decreased by 28.17% and 41.57% year-on-year, respectively. In terms of ship types, there were 35 bulk carriers (4,112,400 DWT), 38 tankers (8,131,283 DWT), 52 chemical tankers (1,555,986 DWT), 21 container ships (193,944 TEU), 46 LPG carriers (5,091,000 cubic meters), 35 offshore vessels (187,976 CGT), and 51 other vessels (795,702 CGT). By country, China signed 139 orders totaling 3,479,885 CGT; Japan signed 11 orders totaling 184,182 CGT; and South Korea signed 70 orders totaling 3,069,948 CGT. The corrected gross tonnage accounted for 48.23%, 2.55%, and 42.55% of the global new ship orders, respectively.

Global backlog orders: 4,594 ships, with 2,752 ships from Chinese shipyards accounting for 59.90% of the global market share.

According to statistics, as of March 9, 2024, global shipyards had a backlog of 4,594 ships, totaling 126,011,968 CGT. Compared to 4,649 ships totaling 126,629,598 CGT on February 9, 2024, the backlog decreased by 1.18% month-on-month, and the corrected gross tonnage decreased by 0.49% month-on-month.

Among them, Chinese shipyards had a backlog of 2,752 ships, totaling 63,002,200 CGT, accounting for 59.90% of the global market share in terms of number of ships and 50.00% in terms of CGT; Japanese shipyards had a backlog of 684 ships, totaling 12,630,492 CGT, accounting for 14.89% of the global market share in terms of number of ships and 10.02% in terms of CGT; South Korean shipyards had a backlog of 725 ships, totaling 38,551,932 CGT, accounting for 15.78% of the global market share in terms of number of ships and 30.59% in terms of CGT.

In terms of major ship types, the backlog orders for bulk carriers were 1,164 ships, totaling 88,609,827 DWT; for tankers, 876 ships, totaling 59,050,731 DWT; and for container ships, 785 ships, totaling 6,554,010 TEU.

Completion volume decreased by 49.89% month-on-month, with the most deliveries of bulk carriers and container ships.

In February 2024, global shipyards delivered 119 new ships, totaling 5,329,833 DWT. Compared to 228 new ship deliveries totaling 10,636,258 DWT in January 2024, the number decreased by 47.81% month-on-month, and the DWT decreased by 49.89% month-on-month. Compared to 169 new ships totaling 5,259,369 DWT delivered by global shipyards in February 2023, the number decreased by 29.59% year-on-year, and the DWT increased by 1.34% year-on-year.

In terms of ship types, 35 bulk carriers were delivered, totaling 2,417,059 DWT; 20 container ships were delivered, totaling 152,921 TEU; 5 tankers were delivered, totaling 430,171 DWT; 5 chemical tankers were delivered, totaling 96,729 DWT; 11 LPG carriers were delivered, totaling 996,971 cubic meters; 29 offshore vessels were delivered, totaling 33,090 DWT; and 14 other vessels were delivered, totaling 88,473 DWT.

In January-February 2024, global shipyards delivered a total of 347 new ships, totaling 15,966,091 DWT. Compared to 410 new ship deliveries totaling 14,997,630 DWT in the same period of 2023, the number decreased by 15.37% year-on-year, and the DWT increased by 6.46% year-on-year.

In terms of ship types, 85 bulk carriers were delivered, totaling 7,026,664 DWT; 69 container ships were delivered, totaling 457,543 TEU; 23 tankers were delivered, totaling 1,462,041 DWT; 17 chemical tankers were delivered, totaling 443,076 DWT; 25 LPG carriers were delivered, totaling 2,202,114 cubic meters; 76 offshore vessels were delivered, totaling 149,021 DWT; and 52 other vessels were delivered, totaling 359,623 DWT.

Prices for bulk carriers and container ships remained flat, while prices for tankers increased.

In February, the new ship price index for bulk carriers and container ships was 166 and 112, respectively, while the new ship price index for tankers increased by 1 point month-on-month to 211.

In February, new ship prices for various types of bulk carriers remained unchanged month-on-month. Specifically, the prices for new Capesize bulk carriers (176/180 KDWT), Panamax bulk carriers (75/77 KDWT), Supramax bulk carriers (61/64.5 KDWT), and Handysize bulk carriers (25/30 KDWT) were US\$67.75 million, US\$34.75 million, US\$33.25 million, and US\$26.93 million respectively. For new oil tankers, prices increased month-on-month for all types except VLCCs (315-320 KDWT), which remained unchanged. The price for a new VLCC (315-320 KDWT) was US\$128 million. Suezmax tankers (156-158 KDWT), Aframax tankers (113-115 KDWT), Panamax tankers (73-75 KDWT), and Handysize tankers (47-51 KDWT) saw price increases of US\$500,000, reaching US\$85.5 million, US\$71 million, US\$58.5 million, and US\$48.5 million respectively. Regarding new container ships, prices remained unchanged month-on-month for all types except for Ultra-Panamax container ships (22000-24000 TEU) and Handysize container ships (1000-1100 TEU), which saw increases. The prices for Ultra-Panamax container ships (22000-24000 TEU) and Handysize container ships (1000-1100 TEU) increased by US\$500,000 and US\$250,000 respectively, reaching US\$264.5 million and US\$24 million. The prices for Ultra-Panamax container ships (13000-13500 TEU), Panamax container ships (7500-8500 TEU and 3500-4000 TEU), Post-Panamax container ships (2600-2900 TEU), and Handysize container ships (1850-2100 TEU) were US\$173 million, US\$118 million, US\$57 million, US\$41.25 million, and US\$30.5 million respectively.