Once considered powerhouses in the shipbuilding industry, South Korean and Chinese players are now scrambling to survive amid a prolonged drought of new orders. The downturn across many shipping segments has deterred ship owners from committing to newbuilding investments, while the oil shock has caused drilling companies to either delay or cancel offshore plant orders. Oil majors have curtailed exploration and production activity, slashing demand for drillship and rigs. While South Korean heavyweight shipbuilders Hyundai Heavy Industries and Samsung Heavy Industries have seen new orders reduced year-on-year in 2015 and 2016, Daewoo Shipbuilding & Marine Engineering (DSME) has been especially hard-hit because accounting fraud that was allegedly perpetrated by its last two CEOs, Nam Sang-tae and Ko Jae-ho.
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