According to Banchero Costa, “contracting has been driven by tankers. In Jan-Sep 2026, 267 crude tankers of 67.0 mln DWT were ordered (+267.7% y-o-y), including 172 VLCCs, while bulkcarrier ordering held steady (+4.7% in DWT terms). 83 LNG carriers of 13.12 mln CBM were ordered, against 35 of 2.94 mln CBM a year earlier, and 519 containerships of 4.05 mln TEU (+11.7%), 89% of them at Chinese yards”.

Additionally, “newbuilding prices are firm for tankers and bulkcarriers but softer for large containerships and LNG carriers. In Sep 2026 a VLCC was assessed at USD 131.0 mln (+7.4% y-o-y) and a Capesize at USD 79.0 mln (+3.9%), while a 20,000 TEU containership eased to USD 210.4 mln (-4.8%) and a 180,000 CBM LNG carrier to USD 242.0 mln (-3.3%). We expect tanker newbuilding prices to stay firm into 2027, with the main yards full until 2029, but see limited room for further gains as new Chinese capacity comes on stream. With 33% of this year’s contracting (in CGT) at new or revived yards, the main risks are delays and the 2028 delivery peak”, the shipbroker said.

THE ORDERBOOK: LARGEST FOR CONTAINERSHIPS, GAS CARRIERS AND TANKERS Banchero Costa added that “the orderbook is large in every cargo sector, but its size relative to the fleet differs widely. Bulkcarriers of 20,000 DWT and over have 1,449 ships and 145.3 mln DWT on order (14.2% of the trading fleet), crude tankers of 60,000 DWT and over 574 ships and 135.4 mln DWT (29.3%), coated product tankers of 30,000-119,999 DWT 677 ships and 45.9 mln DWT (20.7%), and IMO I/II chemical tankers of 1,000-41,999 DWT 540 ships (20.2%). Containerships and gas carriers have the largest orderbooks relative to their fleets. 1,641 fully cellular containerships of 14.6 mln TEU are on order, equal to 43.5% of the fleet, and the ULCS orderbook equals 87% of the ULCS fleet. For LNG carriers the ratio is 40.9% (350 ships of 54.9 mln CBM) and for LPG carriers 38.5% (320 ships of 21.4 mln CBM), with the VLGC orderbook at 44.6% of the VLGC fleet”.

Meanwhile, during the past week, Banchero Costa noted that “newbuilding activity this week was broad-based, with significant contracting across the bulk carrier, container, tanker, gas carrier and offshore sectors. The bulk carrier sector was particularly notable for a major grain transportation programme involving COSCO Shipping Bulk. In the bulk carrier sector, COSCO Shipping Bulk reportedly arranged a programme for 16x 87,000 dwt bulk carriers at Fujian Mawei, priced at approximately USD 49.5 million each, with deliveries scheduled between March 2029 and September 2035. In the container sector, HMM reportedly contracted 7x 13,000 teu containerships at Hyundai Samho, priced at approximately USD 180.1 million each, with deliveries scheduled for March 2028. Danaos Shipping also reportedly contracted 2x 9,200 teu containerships at Shanghai Waigaoqiao, priced at approximately USD 109 million each, with deliveries scheduled for June and December 2029. Global Car Carriers was active in the car carrier sector, reportedly contracting 2x PCTCs at Zhoushan Changhong International, with deliveries scheduled for June and October 2030. The vessels will feature LNG dual-fuel propulsion and are designed by Shanghai-based SDARI. Tanker ordering continued across the product and crude oil segments. Nanjing Tanker reportedly contracted 4x 115,000 dwt LR2 tankers at Dalian Shipbuilding Industry, with deliveries scheduled between February 2029 and July 2030. No price reported so far. In the gas carrier sector, BGN International reportedly contracted 4x 93,000 cu.m. LPG carriers at Hyundai, priced at approximately USD 118 million each, with deliveries scheduled between August 2029 and February 2031. Alpha Gas also reportedly contracted 2x 88,000 cu.m. LPG/ammonia carriers at Hengli Heavy Industries, with deliveries scheduled for June 2029”, the shipbroker concluded. Nikos Roussanoglou, Hellenic Shipping News Worldwide