Shipbuilding Policy in Asia (2000-2010s): A Comparative Study

Abstract

During the period of 2000 to 2010, the shipbuilding business has experienced tremendous changes within the global market. With Europe's domination fading away, the increased role of Asian countries has set itself up as the centre of world shipbuilding as well as maritime business in general. This study is to investigate the competitiveness of Asian shipbuilding policy and the industry. The paper presents a comparative study on shipbuilding policy and the competitiveness of the top three shipbuilders, namely South Korea, Japan and China in a quantitative fashion, coupled with the implicit indication each country's advantages and disadvantages. With the introduction and application of the Analytical Hierarchy Process (AHP) method into the shipbuilding market, a set of critical success factors identified as criteria and sub-criteria to shipbuilding competitiveness is demonstrated to reveal the ranking orders among the three. Supported by ample official data and a survey feedback summary, the obtained results suggest that South Korea is currently leading the world shipbuilding market, followed by China, with an impressive shipbuilding output. Finally, the paper discusses the way forward for the three competitors. The landscape of the shipbuilding industry continues to evolve. Confronted with the evolution, discerning policy makers and entrepreneurs shall be equipped both in resources and personnel to cope with changes and ideally be ahead of the market in order to stimulate and be part of the change.