Korea’s Big 3 shipbuilders on track to meet annual targets as merchant vessel orders surpass goals

South Korean shipbuilders Hyundai Heavy Industries, Samsung Heavy Industries, and Hanwha Ocean have each surpassed their merchant vessel order targets for the year, positioning them to meet their annual goals. Hyundai Heavy Industries booked $15.97 billion in cumulative orders from January to July, a 88.83 percent increase from $8.46 billion in the same period last year.

Their shipbuilding division led with $13.05 billion in orders, up 124.67 percent year-on-year. Merchant vessel orders alone were $12.69 billion, surpassing Hyundai's annual target of $11.47 billion. The company's overall order target achievement rate stood at 78.2 percent. Samsung Heavy Industries recorded $10.2 billion in new orders, meeting 73 percent of its $13.9 billion annual target.

Their merchant vessel orders alone were $5.8 billion, at 102 percent of the segment target. Hanwha Ocean secured 30 new orders, valued at approximately $5.2 billion, with merchant vessels leading at $4.07 billion. The three shipbuilders' combined order backlog from January to July reached approximately $130 billion, with analysts expecting this figure to exceed 200 trillion won by year-end.