More and more South Korean ship equipment manufacturers are striving to expand their presence in the Chinese market as orders from domestic shipbuilders register instability amid global trade tensions, which are escalating due to factors such as the volatile U.S. tariffs.
Busan, the second largest city of South Korea, serves as an important city for the country's shipbuilding industry headquartering nearly 60 percent of small and medium-sized manufacturers of ship equipment.
Workers at a local company are busy assembling water monitor systems that will be exported to China The company also produces anti-heeling systems, tank cleaning machines, and oil/water interface meters that apply to various ships such as container vessels and oil tankers.
It is developing a liquid cargo tank carrying liquefied natural gas (LNG) carrier so as to enhance its competitiveness in the Chinese market.
"I agree very much that gaining access to the Chinese market means an access to the global market. At present, Chinese customers have quite high requirements for product quality. Companies like us should not only reduce costs, but also upgrade our second and third generations of products so as to enhance our brand's market recognition and competitiveness," said Lee Geun-hyung, manger of the company.
Lee said that in the first half of 2025, his company exported products worth 24 billion won (around 17.27 million U.S. dollars) to China, representing 30 percent of its sales.
The ship equipment that South Korea exports to China mainly includes hull safety monitoring systems, energy saving equipment and engine components.
Some shipbuilders have even moved its component production plants to China, sending the components back to South Korea for assembly. Besides, they have also cooperated with Chinese enterprises in research and development.
"Currently, South Korean shipbuilding enterprises are focusing on environmentally friendly ships, such as LNG tankers. Although these shipbuilding enterprises have seen steady growth due to abundant order volumes, it's difficult for small and medium-sized ship equipment enterprises to benefit. In the medium and long term, if there is still uncertainty in global trade, we should be based on core technologies to accelerate market diversification, and meanwhile, actively explore the land equipment market and even cross-industry development," said Kim Cheong-wook, head of Busan Shipbuilding and Marine Equipment Association.
In the first half of this year, the local governments of Busan and other South Korean cities have held trade negotiation conferences in Shanghai, Dalian and other cities in China, hoping to tap into the market and achieve win-win results.
S Korean ship equipment manufacturers eye Chinese market amid global trade tensions
