BUSY SHIPYARDS

Evening Post, Volume CXXI, Issue 128, 1 June 1936, Page 7

BUSY SHIPYARDS

THE BRITISH OUTPUT

At the close of the quarter ended March 31 there were 220 merchant vessels of 842,361 tons gross building in United Kingdom yards. This is 99,275 tons more than at the end of the preceding quarter and 286,546 more than a year ago (says the "Daily ,Tele- , Boyd's Register, which publishes these returns, points out that this is the highest recorded since December, 1930, and exceeds the total tonnage under, construction in the six leading countries abroad. While the new figures show that the ship-building industry is definitely recovering they do not indicate a "boom." The tonnage now building abroad, 977 753, shows an increase of about 178,000 on the total for the previous quarter. Altogether 1,820,114 tons of new merchant shipping are building in the world, the percentage of British construction , being. 46.3. The present world total is thd highest since June, 1931, During recent months work was begun in British yards on 232,523 tons, a decline of 78,577. tons on the December quarter. Of the 842,361 tons building in British yards 402,890 tons consist of motor-ships. Abroad motor-ship tonnage under construction is 363,043 tons in excess of that of the steamers. As compared with the position a year ago production on the Clyde has risen from 238,000 to -386,000 tons, at Liverpool from 19,000 to 38,000, Newcastle from 52,960 to 93,230, and Sunderland from 14,862 to 88,170. When the Queen Mary, symbol of returning trade, left the Clyde, nearly 100 vessels were on order or under construction in the yards near her birthplace. At least six firms hope to share this year in Admiralty orders valued at £20,000,000. One Merseyside shipyard is dealing with a £2,500,000 Admiralty order which will give work for another eighteen months. Two liners and an 8000-ton cruiser are under construction at Barrow. Belfast has the largest total of. men employed, since the boom year. On the Tyne during the first; three months of the year nine ships,, totalling 31,000 gross tons, were launched, compared with' five ships totalling 15,495 tons in the same period last year.