Japan’s new vessel orders for Sept rise 11% on year

Though new vessel orders received by Japanese shipbuilders rose both on year and on month in September, the country’s steelmakers fear ship plate consumption will continue being kept under pressure. This is because the backlog of ship orders held by the yards remains far below from their target and the builders are being forced to keep their operation rates low, an official from the Japan Ship Exporters’ Association (JSEA) warned Tuesday.

Last month’s new vessel orders received by Japan’s shipbuilders totalled 939,500 gross tonnes in 16 vessels, higher by 11.3% on year – making for the second consecutive on-year rise – and by a huge 62.2% from August. Nevertheless, the January-September total was down 26.6% on year at 4.93 million gross tonnes, according to