Facing the dip in profits, South Korean shipbuilding companies are making efforts to solve the problem.

The leading shipbuilding enterprises such as Hyundai Heavy Industries and Samsung Heavy Industries are now planning to increase the imports of shipbuilding steel plate from China.

In the fourth quarter of 2011, the Chinese shipbuilding steel plate was quoted at US$700/ton, down by US$50~US$60/ton and US$70~US$80/ton compared to the counterparts from Japan and South Korea respectively.

Market participants said that since South Korean and Japanese shipbuilding steel plates still enjoy the advantage of better quality, South Korea’s imports of shipbuilding steel plate from China will not probably soar sharply.