Chinese shipyards' new orders slumped 69.4% year on year (YoY) to 14.0 million dwt in the first seven months of 2015, according to the China Association of the National Shipbuilding Industry (CANSI).

While the yards' completed tonnage climbed 9.8% to 22.7 million dwt over the period, their orderbook slipped 10.9% YoY to 136.7 million dwt.

Export orders, contributing 85% of the yards' new orders, tumbled 72.2% YoY to 11.9 million dwt.

Yet the 88 shipbuilding and relevant companies surveyed by CANSI reported a combined 3.7% YoY rise in operating revenues to CNY164.5bn(US$25.7bn), although their aggregate gross profit dropped 17.7% to CNY3.4bn.

The industrial output values of these companies increased 4.5% YoY to CNY240.0bn, with a rise for shipbuilders of 4.2%, an increase for marine-equipment makers of 2.3%, and a decline for ship repairers of 10.6% YoY.

China's shipbuilders had ended 2014 with a YoY fall of 14.2% in awarded orders after buyers started cutting back on spending on new ships from late last year.