Shipyards change course to high-end vessels

Companies switch to diversified options to broaden manufacturing expertise, attract new customers

After building cheap bulk carriers and tugboats for more than a decade, Chinese shipyards have moved to upgrade their products to tankers to reach buyers in new segment of the shipping market.

The new course adopted by shipyards in Jiangsu, Zhejiang and Shanghai is largely the result of many global shipping companies reporting losses in the past four years because of overcapacity, falling ship prices, surging costs in labor, energy, steel and ship parts.