Orderbook deadweight of shipbuilders in Japan 2023, by vessel type

In 2023, the deadweight of bulk carriers in Japanese order books amounted to approximately 23.2 million tons. Japan stood in third place across shipbuilding nations worldwide after China and South Korea, accounting for 13.5 percent of the global orderbook volume in deadweight tons.

What kinds of trading vessels does Japan build?

Japanese shipbuilders are known for their bulk carriers; merchant ships designed for large amounts of unpackaged cargo. Goods transported in bulk are typically grains, coal, ore, cement, lumber, or similar commodities, for some existing specialized bulkers. While bulkers usually transport small solids, merchant ships carrying liquids in bulk are called tankers. Most tankers are oil carriers or chemical tankers. Due to their hazardous freight, these need to meet higher safety requirements controlled by ship classification societies like ClassNK. As natural gas and hydrogen gain importance, Japanese shipbuilders have started to develop tankers with cryogenic storage tanks, making it possible to ship large amounts of cooled-down gases in their condensed liquefied form.

Shipping, shipbuilding, and marine engineering: Japan’s maritime industry

The maritime cluster in Japan is a tightly intertwined industry, working hand in hand. Marine engineering companies and steelmakers supply shipbuilders, shipbuilders receive orders from leasing or shipping companies, and shipping companies provide their services to customers (freight owners or other logistics companies). From material procurement to shipping services: large parts of the supply chain are channeled through domestic stakeholders, which may be overseas companies on paper. For example, Japanese trading vessel owners obtain over 80 percent of their ships from domestic companies. Domestic shipbuilders, in turn, produce around three in four vessels for the Japanese merchant fleet.