As the turbulent trade relationship between the US and China sends ripples across the global shipbuilding industry, South Korean shipyards might be expecting a lift from a flood of new orders, but industry observers say competition from China will remain strong.
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With the United States set to begin charging higher docking fees from October for vessels made in China, part of an ongoing trade war that has cooled somewhat following an agreement on a temporary tariff truce and the prospect of further talks between the world’s two largest economies, one scholar said China’s shipbuilding loss could be South Korea’s gain.
“Some Chinese shipbuilders could be grappling with the prospect of hard-won orders being lost [to Korean rivals],” said Zeng Ji, a professor of ocean science and engineering at Shanghai Maritime University.
While China retained top place in a global shipbuilding industry that had boomed in recent years, some of its shipbuilders had been buffeted by shocks emanating from the US this year, he added.
Until Monday’s agreement to de-escalate a bilateral tariff war, US President Donald Trump had been stoking the flames of trade conflict following his return to the White House in January.
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The Office of the US Trade Representative announced on April 17 that vessels made in China would face higher docking fees from mid-October, with no indication yet that its decision will be reversed or suspended, despite the trade war ceasefire.