Global Ship Orders Rise 27% in January; China Widens Lead Over South Korea

A 73,600-deadweight-ton LR1 tanker, the same model as a new vessel International Seaways ordered from K Shipbuilding. [Photo=K Shipbuilding]

Global ship orders in January rose 27% from a year earlier, driven by demand to replace vessels to meet environmental rules and by a worldwide increase in orders for liquefied natural gas carriers.

Clarksons Research, a British shipbuilding and shipping market tracker, said Jan. global orders totaled 5.61 million CGT, or 158 ships, up from 4.43 million CGT a year earlier.

By country, South Korea won 1.25 million CGT for 26 ships, or 22% of the total, while China secured 3.74 million CGT for 106 ships, or 67%.

Global order backlogs at the end of last month rose 5.07 million CGT from the previous month to 180.35 million CGT. South Korea accounted for 36.31 million CGT, or 20%, and China held 111.91 million CGT, or 62%. Compared with the same period a month earlier, South Korea’s backlog was up 1.0 million CGT and China’s was up 3.8 million CGT. From a year earlier, South Korea was down 390,000 CGT, while China was up 12.83 million CGT.

Clarksons’ newbuilding price index at the end of last month was 184.29, down 0.36 points from December 2025 (184.65), holding broadly steady. By ship type, prices were US$248 million for an LNG carrier, $128.5 million for a very large crude carrier, and $261 million for a 22,000- to 24,000-TEU container ship.

* This article has been translated by AI.

SHIN JIA fromjia@ajunews.com