S. Korea's Shipbuilding Orders Hit High

Combined orders received by South Korea's shipbuilders reached a record $12.4b in the third quarter of the year, reports said. The tally represents a 106.4 percent gain as measured in dollars, and a 142.5 percent surge in actual shipbuilding orders compared to the same three month period in 2005, the Ministry of Commerce, Industry and Energy said. In the July-September period, South Korean shipyards clinched orders for 152 ships amounting to 5.97 million compensated gross tons (CGT). Korean shipyards have been logging up orders in excess of 2 million tons since the first quarter of this year. South Korea has put seven shipbuilders on the world's top-10 list including Hyundai Heavy Industries Co., Daewoo Shipbuilding & Marine Industries Co. and Samsung Heavy Industries Co. Seoul, Oct. 25 (Yonhap News)