An aerial drone photo taken on Aug. 26, 2025 shows a cargo ship at Qingdao Port in Qingdao, east China's Shandong Province.(Xinhua/Li Ziheng)

China's shipbuilding industry continued to lead the world across several major indicators during the 14th Five-Year Plan period (2021-25), CCTV News reported on Monday, citing data from the China Association of the National Shipbuilding Industry (CANSI).

The country's leading position in global shipbuilding stems from sustained government support, and a strong industrial chain and advanced manufacturing capacity, which have enabled it to meet global demand for large ships despite challenges, a Chinese expert said.

During the 14th Five-Year Plan period, Chinese shipyards accounted for 64.2 percent of global new ship orders, an increase of 15.1 percentage points compared with the 13th Five-Year Plan period (2016-20), according to the CANSI.

During the same period, China's shipbuilding output accounted for 51.7 percent of the global total, up 8.6 percentage points from the end of the 13th Five-Year Plan in 2020, while its corrected gross tonnage — which reflects both ship value and size — reached 47.2 percent of the world total, an increase of 11 percentage points from the 13th Five-Year Plan period, CCTV News reported.

The international competitiveness of China's leading shipbuilding enterprises has steadily strengthened, with six companies ranking among the world's top 10 in completed ship volume, new orders, and order backlogs, the report said.

Alongside this growth in quantity, several industry "firsts" have also been achieved. For example, during the 14th Five-Year Plan period, China delivered the world's first 100,000-ton intelligent aquaculture ship, Guoxin 1, and the world's first 150,000-ton self-propelled enclosed salmon farming ship, Suhai 1, marking the country's entry into the deep-sea aquaculture era, according to the report.

In addition, China's domestically designed and built ocean drilling ship Dream was officially commissioned, with a maximum drilling depth of 11,000 meters, the deepest possible among existing ocean drilling ships worldwide, per CCTV News.

Chen Daxi, a veteran industry analyst and vice chairman of the Zhejiang Shipbuilding Engineering Society, told the Global Times on Monday that China's global leadership in shipbuilding is due not only to the government's long-term support for the sector, but to China's complete industrial chain and advanced manufacturing capabilities. He added that digitalization, automation, and green development further strengthened the country's competitive edge in shipbuilding.

"We have always aimed to expand our international network and integrate with the global market. This is why many international shipowners are willing to build their ships in China and cooperate with Chinese partners," Chen said.

Although the global new shipbuilding market continued to cool in September, Chinese shipbuilders maintained their leading position at the top of the rankings, according to eworldship.com, an industry information platform.

Chinese shipyards received orders for 69 new ships totaling 1.42 million compensated gross tons in September, accounting for 40 percent of the global market share and ranking first, eworldship.com reported, citing data released by Clarkson in October.

External challenges persist, including the US decision to impose additional port service fees on ships owned or operated by Chinese enterprises, a move Chen said is clearly a politically motivated protectionist attempt. However, such a move will not enhance US shipbuilding capabilities, and will instead disrupt maritime trade between the two countries and globally, the Chinese expert said.

Despite ongoing external challenges, the outlook for China's shipbuilding industry remains positive, benefiting not only China but the global market as a whole, said Chen.