SEOUL, July 6 (Xinhua) -- South Korean shipbuilders secured 45.5 percent of global shipbuilding orders in the first half of this year, taking the No. 1 spot in four years, the trade ministry said Wednesday.
Local shipbuilders obtained 9.79 million compensated gross tons (CGTs) of orders in the January-June period, taking up 45.5 percent of the total global shipbuilding orders, according to the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy.
The country recaptured the No. 1 position in four years on strong demand for high-priced vessels such as liquified natural gas (LNG) carriers and container ships.
Orders for LNG carriers that the country received, amounted to 5.44 million CGTs in the first half of this year, accounting for 70.8 percent of the total worldwide.
Container ship orders came to 1.48 million CGTs, taking up 42.7 percent of the global container orders.
In terms of value, the country won 26.5 billion U.S. dollars of shipbuilding orders for the first six months of this year to make up 47 percent of the global total. ■
