Yangzijiang Shipbuilding aims to defy the market gloom by doubling its sales volume this year.

Chairman Ren Yuanlin says the shipbuilding market is in a bad state due to low demand for newbuildings. However, his company has taken more than 40 orders in the past 10 months.

“Yangzijiang has already secured contracts worth close to $1.5bn, which is the sales target it set for this year,” Ren said.