APAC marine vessels market seen reaching $68.9b by 2029

This will be driven by trade expansion, fleet replacement and defence modernisation.

The Asia Pacific (APAC) marine vessels market is projected to grow from $63.6b in 2024 to $68.9b in 2029, a compound annual growth rate of 1.3%, according to a MarketsandMarkets report.

The report attributes the growth to maritime trade expansion along Southeast Asian shipping corridors, fleet replacement and defence modernisation in India, South Korea and Australia.

The region accounts for more than 50% of the global market, anchored by shipbuilding hubs in South Korea, China and Japan.

Specifically, China is the largest national market in the report at $13.6b, followed by Japan ($5.6b), Singapore ($3.3b), South Korea ($2.5b), India ($2.3b) and Australia ($757m).

The report puts the rest of the region at $22.5b.

Moreover, APAC’s growth rate trails Europe and North America and is only slightly ahead of the Middle East.

It cited global economic uncertainty and supply chain complexity as the main brakes on growth. However, it flagged green shipping technology and autonomous vessels as emerging opportunities.

MarketsandMarkets said commercial vessels, split between cargo and passenger ships, make up the largest ship-type segment, whilst the 100 to 500 deadweight tonnage class is the fastest-growing tonnage band.

Shipyards are also adopting digital twins, liquefied natural gas and hydrogen systems, and product lifecycle management-based design tools to cut errors and delivery times, the report said.