Germany’s shipbuilding association, VSM, has hit out at rivals in East Asia for taking on loss making projects.
In a release following the association’s annual general meeting, the German yards group stated: “China is attracting more and more orders in niche markets with prices below material costs. In Korea, the state-owned banks, which are now often the main owners of the yards after restructuring, are now also financing loss-making projects. In addition, the state has announced despite overcapacity to want to order 200 large merchant ships.”
The German comments follow on from recent suggestions that Japan is contemplating once again taking South Korea to the World Trade Organisation (WTO) over the issue of state subsidies.
“Effective global trading rules would be helpful to all market participants, as overcapacities and exaggerated price competition are reflected throughout the value chain,” the VSM release concluded.
