In 2025, China's shipbuilding industry has once again delivered an impressive performance: the three major indicators of the shipbuilding industry continue to lead the world, maintaining the world's first place for 16 consecutive years. According to data recently released by the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology, by 2025, China's annual shipbuilding completion will reach 53.69 million deadweight tons, accounting for 56.1% of the world's total; The newly received order volume is 107.82 million deadweight tons, accounting for 69.0% of the world's total; The handheld order volume is 274.42 million deadweight tons, accounting for 66.8% of the world's total, reaching a new high. This is not only an impressive set of trade data, but also a vivid portrayal of China's manufacturing industry deeply integrating into the global industrial division of labor and serving the world economy. From being a "shipbuilding powerhouse" to "serving the world", China's shipbuilding industry is providing an indispensable "Chinese driving force" for the global shipping industry with an open attitude. Nearly 90% of ship exports by 2025, from Europe to Southeast Asia, from North America to the Middle East, international shipowners are pouring orders into Chinese shipyards. The first production vessel of the 111000 ton large liquefied natural gas (LNG) dual fuel crude oil/product oil tanker "ATLANTIC PEARL" built by CSSC Guangzhou International for Singapore EPS has been signed and delivered; The 115000 ton ice strengthened product oil tanker built by Shanchuan Heavy Industry for Greek company Dynacom and the first 115000 ton crude oil tanker built for Arcadia company have recently started construction simultaneously; Greek shipowner Danaos and German shipowner Asiatic Lloyd have successively placed orders for 7100TEU container ships with China Shipbuilding Industry Corporation Dalian Shipyard... "International shipowners have clearly returned to the Chinese market. ”Li Yanqing, Vice President of the China Shipbuilding Industry Association, told reporters that data shows that by 2025, China's exported ships will account for 89.6%, 89.5%, and 93.2% of the country's shipbuilding completion, new orders, and held orders, respectively. This means that for every 10 ships built by China, nearly 9 will serve the global shipping market. In 2025, China's shipbuilding industry achieved remarkable results, with all three major indicators exceeding expectations. ”Li Yanqing said, "The future market is still expected to develop relatively moderately, so it is important for China's shipbuilding industry to continue to seize market opportunities, quickly accept orders, and ensure delivery." Why do global shipowners favor China so much? Creating quickly is one aspect. In 2025, CSSC Hudong Zhonghua Shipbuilding (Group) Co., Ltd. will deliver multiple 174000 cubic meter LNG carriers for Qatar Energy's "Hundred Ships Plan". Saad Al Kabi, the State Minister for Energy Affairs of Qatar, said, "Since the delivery of the first ship in 2024, ships have been arriving almost every month, and this efficiency far exceeds our expectations. This' Chinese speed 'has impressed international ship owners. Another reason is the high overall cost-effectiveness. Zhong Zhechao, founder and CEO of One Shipping, analyzed that China's shipbuilding industry has undergone decades of development, accumulated mature industry chain comprehensive capabilities and strong market competitiveness. Chinese shipbuilding enterprises can simultaneously provide large-scale construction capabilities, definite delivery capabilities, mature green ship solutions, and supporting financial support, effectively reducing the comprehensive risks of ship owners in technology, financing, and delivery. There is a consensus in the global shipbuilding industry that, at the same level of technology, the total construction cost of Chinese shipbuilding is the lowest; At the same price, China Shipbuilding has the strongest delivery capability and reliability. ”Zhong Zhechao explained that taking Hudong Zhonghua as an example, its independently developed "Changheng" series LNG transport ships have an evaporation rate controlled within 0.085%. The same ship of natural gas, a Chinese made ship can save a large amount of evaporation and directly help customers save money, "said Zhong Zhechao. Professor Xu Guangjian from the Department of Public Policy at the School of Public Administration, Renmin University of China believes that the most critical supporting factor for China's shipbuilding industry lies in the systematic competitiveness of the entire industry chain. As the only country in the world with all the industrial categories listed in the United Nations Industrial Classification, China's manufacturing added value accounts for 30% of the global total, ranking first in the world for 14 consecutive years. A complete range of industrial systems is conducive to forming strong industrial supporting capabilities and comprehensive cost advantages. The strong manufacturing system has endowed Chinese shipping companies with extremely strong resilience, enabling them to effectively guarantee the supply of components and ensure that the production pace is not affected by external supply disruptions during turbulent global supply chains. This is an important factor that makes international shipowners feel at ease, "said Xu Guangjian. The systematic competitiveness of the entire industry chain enables China's shipbuilding industry to continue leading the world, relying not only on the number of orders, but also on the collaborative innovation capability of the entire industry chain and the open attitude of serving the world. In the No. 2 dock of Waigaoqiao Shipbuilding of Shanghai Shipbuilding Industry Group, the total progress of the second domestically produced large cruise ship "Aida Huacheng" project has exceeded 91%, shortening the construction period by nearly 8 months compared to the first domestically produced large cruise ship. The scheduling algorithms for inbound and outbound inventory are now completed by AI. ”Yuan Yi, Director of Waigaoqiao Shipbuilding at China Shipbuilding Industry Corporation, introduced that in the thin plate production workshop, laser cutting, plasma cutting and other workstations are busy and rely on an "AI brain" to command and dispatch the entire process. Compared to the past where production was arranged by experienced masters, AI autonomously scheduled production plans have increased workshop capacity by 25%. Experts told reporters that as a representative of traditional heavy industry, the deep integration of AI with practical scenarios has solved the problems of complex shipbuilding processes and complex materials, bringing about a full process transformation. In the future, not only domestic large cruise ships, but also various types of ships from design, procurement to production, logistics and other links will be connected by AI. Every employee can work side by side with "digital employees", making China's shipbuilding not only "make more", but also "make more". Green transformation is another 'Chinese business card'. In 2025, the global shipping industry is accelerating its green and low-carbon transformation, and Chinese shipping companies have won market opportunities with their forward-looking layout in the field of new energy ships. Data shows that by 2025, multiple world-class green intelligent ships will be delivered, significant breakthroughs will be made in high-end transformation, and significant achievements will be made in the high-quality development of the industry. The world's first 24000TEU class LNG dual fuel super large container ship, the "Dafei Senna River", delivered by Hudong Zhonghua, is equipped with 18600 cubic meters of MARK III membrane fuel tanks. The LNG loaded can provide "green power" for the ship for a single voyage of nearly 20000 nautical miles; The world's first sail assisted Afra product oil tanker, the "Branz Hatch," delivered by Waigaoqiao Shipbuilding, is equipped with three hard wing sails and can achieve a daily fuel savings of 14.5 tons under ideal sea conditions. There are differences in the demand for products among different countries and regions. For example, the Southeast Asian market focuses more on cost-effectiveness and adaptability, while the EU region attaches great importance to compliance and sustainable development. The American market has higher requirements for automation integration and intelligence. ”The relevant person in charge of China Shipbuilding Industry Corporation stated that Chinese companies are continuing to deepen their globalization strategy, expand their localized services and supply chain systems overseas, and win recognition from users. The synergy advantage of the industrial chain adds competitiveness to China's shipbuilding industry. On Changxing Island in Shanghai, central state-owned enterprises such as Hudong Zhonghua and Jiangnan Shipbuilding are leading over 7000 supporting enterprises, building an ecological network of "assembly+supporting". The aforementioned person in charge stated that China has established a complete and independently controllable full supply chain system from core components, standards to solutions, from ship steel plates to engines, from navigation systems to deck machinery. In shipbuilding bases such as the Yangtze River Delta, China has formed efficient industrial clusters, with close cooperation between upstream and downstream enterprises, playing an irreplaceable role in reducing logistics and production costs. ”Xu Guangjian told reporters that improving service capabilities is equally crucial. Compared to foreign brands with longer supply cycles and higher maintenance costs, Chinese shipping companies have the advantage of service and response capabilities, shorter after-sales response times, and more flexible engineering support. For global shipping companies, this comprehensive experience of "buying, using, and repairing quickly" is far more attractive than a single performance parameter. In China's foreign trade, there are many goods that exceed imports in exports, leading to the goal of becoming a "shipbuilding powerhouse". Why are the three major indicators of the shipbuilding industry, which have been ranked first in the world for 16 consecutive years, particularly noteworthy? This is not only a change in trade data, but also a significant improvement in the position of the global value chain. ”Li Yanqing stated that the shipbuilding industry is a key support for implementing the strategies of building a strong manufacturing country, a strong transportation country, and a strong maritime country. China's transformation from the largest consumer of ships to the largest supplier of ships serving the world marks the leap of China's manufacturing industry from "scale advantage" to "system advantage". For a long time, countries such as South Korea and Japan have been the main builders of high-end ships, relying on years of technological accumulation and brand advantages. The Chinese shipbuilding industry has gone from mainly focusing on mid to low-end ship types such as bulk carriers and oil tankers, to now making comprehensive breakthroughs in high-end ship types such as LNG carriers, large container ships, and automobile transport ships. Among the 18 main ship types, 16 of them have the world's largest new order volume, and this structural transformation has profound significance. China can not only manufacture a single device, but also output a complete set of replicable and scalable advanced manufacturing capabilities. ”Li Yanqing said. Upgrading from simple goods trade to comprehensive output of "equipment+solutions+services", China's shipbuilding industry is deeply integrating into the global industrial division of labor, jointly shaping a new industrial pattern of green and intelligent development. This integration is two-way and mutually beneficial. For the global shipping industry, the rise of China's shipbuilding industry means richer choices and more reliable supply. Against the backdrop of slowing global economic growth, the successful overseas expansion of China's shipbuilding industry fully demonstrates the resilience and competitiveness of China's manufacturing industry, providing strong support for the stability of the global industrial and supply chains. Data shows that by 2025, six Chinese shipbuilding companies will rank among the top 10 in the world in terms of shipbuilding completion, new orders received, and orders held. China Shipbuilding Industry Corporation has become the world's largest listed shipbuilding company, holding 18% of global orders and extending production schedules until 2029. This scale advantage translates into market discourse power, enabling China's shipbuilding industry to play a leading role in the global shipping industry's green transformation. For China's manufacturing industry, the high growth of ship exports has driven the coordinated development of upstream and downstream industries. Shipbuilding involves dozens of industries such as steel, machinery, electronics, and chemicals. A large LNG carrier requires 25 million components, driving collaboration among over 500 suppliers worldwide. The "going global" of China's shipbuilding industry is actually the collective "going global" of the entire manufacturing industry chain. Having a high market share in the international market can enhance the production scale effect of shipbuilding enterprises and further reduce the production cost of ships. More importantly, this has brought stronger discourse power and bargaining power to Chinese shipping companies in the global shipping industry chain. ”Xu Guangjian said, "At the same time, with full orders in hand and scheduling up to 2028 or even longer, this provides a stable expectation for the shipbuilding industry, allowing shipbuilding companies to more calmly cope with possible market fluctuations in the future and have the confidence to invest more funds and other resources in production technology upgrades and product structure optimization." Looking ahead, Xu Guangjian pointed out that the biggest challenge facing China's shipbuilding industry is how to maintain its scale advantage while further climbing to the high-end of the global value chain, and how to actively achieve high quality and good price while maintaining attractive cost-effectiveness in the international market. He believes that major shipping companies should continue to increase their R&D investment, benchmark against the world's advanced level, overcome key core technologies, accelerate the resolution of bottlenecks, bottlenecks, and pain points in industrial upgrading, and achieve a historic leap towards becoming a "shipbuilding powerhouse". (New Society)