China surpasses Korean shipbuilding industry

All three main indicators of China's shipbuilding industry have surpassed South Korea in the past two years and pose a big threat to its shipyards, according to a report issued by Korea Institute of Industrial Technology on Wednesday.

China's new ship orders, output and ongoing orders accounted for more than 30 percent of the world's total shipbuilding business in 2013. The global share of South Korean shipbuilding sector is lower than its Chinese rival, said the Cheonan-based South Korean government research institute report.

China has taken more market share in the world's maritime engineering product market to build more offshore drilling platforms, offshore wind power devices, maritime crane ships and dredgers.

The nation's shipyards and heavy industries earned $24.5 billion from this high-end market in 2013, about 30 percent higher than Korean shipbuilding industry.

After securing the technology of building liquified natural gas carriers in 2008, China is currently building the world's first compressed natural gas carrier in Qingdao, which has been ordered this month by Pelayaran Bahtera Adhiguna, a State-owned Indonesian company.