Orders uplift

There are encouraging signs that the shipbuilding market may have bottomed out and could start to recover next year. The Gothenburg-based Institute of Shipping Analysis predicts orders for vessels over 400g will fall from 1,400 in 1997 to 600 this year but notes an increase in order activity within the last two months.

In the year to July the Institute recorded falls of 80 per cent in reefer orders, 65 per cent in tankers and 55 per cent in bulk carriers – roro ferries was the only section to show a slight increase. It also noted a shift in ordering patterns away from Japan towards Korean, German, Dutch and French shipyards.

Figures released by the Korea Shipbuilders` Association show some 116 ships with a combined gross tonnage of 6.54 million ordered by the end of August. July and August figures are in sharp contrast to the first seven months which showed a 17.8 per cent drop in orders at Korean yards to 103 vessels (5.8 million tonnes) against 127 ships (7 million tonnes) last year.

This is seen by some as further evidence that the devaluation of Korea`s won is giving its shipyards a competitive edge. However, the KSA says depreciation is working towards competitiveness and adds that its impact is limited as shipyards have to import materials from outside but adds that shipbuilders are “more confident now.”

Meanwhile in Japan first quarter order levels (in tonnage terms) were running at 55 per cent of the 1997 level. The second quarter showed some recovery, reaching 71 per cent but July returned to 54 per cent, with an overall figure of 64 per cent for the year.