SEOUL, July 11 (AJP) - South Korea’s top three shipbuilders — HD Korea Shipbuilding & Offshore Engineering (HD KSOE), Hanwha Ocean, and Samsung Heavy Industries — are projected to post a combined operating profit of more than 2.57 trillion won ($1.86 billion) for the first half of 2025, more than triple the earnings from a year earlier, as the industry rides a wave of high-margin vessel deliveries and growing defense contracts.
The projected total marks a 226 percent increase from the 788.5 billion won reported during the same period in 2024, according to estimates compiled by financial data provider FnGuide and industry analysts.
For the second quarter alone, the shipbuilders are forecast to earn 1.33 trillion won in operating profit, up 167 percent from the year-earlier quarter.
HD KSOE, the intermediate holding company that controls Hyundai Heavy Industries' shipbuilding units, is expected to lead the surge with an estimated 900 billion won in second-quarter profit, a 139 percent jump from a year earlier. For the first half, its operating profit is forecast to reach 1.76 trillion won, up 228 percent.
Much of the gain stems from improved margins at HD Hyundai Heavy Industries, which posted an operating margin of 11.3 percent in the first quarter and is projected to sustain margins near 12 percent in the second.
Industry analysts attribute the rise in profitability to a waning impact from low-margin contracts signed during the industry downturn of 2020–21, which now account for just 2 percent of revenue.
Hanwha Ocean, which returned to the black last year after four consecutive years of losses, is poised to post a dramatic turnaround. The company is projected to report an operating profit in the mid-250 billion won range for the second quarter, compared to a loss in the same period last year. Its first-half profit is expected to total about 510 billion won — an increase of more than 1,000 percent year-over-year.
Hanwha's recovery is being powered by a portfolio shift toward high-value contracts, including submarine construction and maintenance and overhaul (MRO) work for the U.S. Navy. The company’s operating margin hit 8.2 percent in the first quarter and is expected to remain in the 7-percent range.
Samsung Heavy Industries is also expected to show solid results, with a projected first-half operating profit of 298.8 billion won, up 43 percent from a year earlier. The company’s focus on floating liquefied natural gas (FLNG) platforms — a segment where it commands a dominant share of the global market — has provided a steady stream of high-margin work.
Much of the industry’s recent momentum is rooted in the delivery of high-value vessels, particularly LNG carriers and container ships.
HD Hyundai’s current backlog consists of gas carriers making up about 70 percent of its total orders. LNG-related contracts account for more than 60 percent of Hanwha Ocean’s order book. Samsung, for its part, continues to bet heavily on FLNG infrastructure, with demand remaining strong amid a global push for energy security.
Korean shipbuilders are also diversifying into defense and offshore energy platforms, adding stability to what has long been a cyclical industry.
With the Trump administration preparing to invest in revitalizing the U.S. shipbuilding sector, analysts say South Korean firms could see new opportunities emerge in the American commercial and naval markets in the latter half of the year — a development that could open a lucrative new export channel.
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