According to preliminary estimates, China's gross marine product reached 2.6 trillion yuan in the first quarter of 2026. That is more than 380 billion US dollars. The year-on-year growth was 5.4 percent. The marine sector had a good start to the year.

Meng Qinglei, deputy head of the Marine Sector Strategic Planning and Economy Department at the Ministry of Natural Resources, said that this sector continues to play a key role in supporting the country's economic growth. In her words, in the first quarter, China's marine economy maintained strong momentum and continued to serve as a growth driver. It contributed 0.4 percentage points to the country's overall economic growth.

Traditional marine industries continue to strengthen their foundations and show steady progress in modernization and transformation.

From January to March, the shipbuilding sector maintained stable growth momentum. New shipbuilding orders, completed ship volume, and the order backlog in China grew sharply. These indicators increased by 116.7 percent, 33.3 percent, and 30.0 percent respectively compared to the same period last year. China maintained the largest share of the global shipbuilding market.

Several high-end environmentally friendly vessels were launched or delivered to customers. These include the second large cruise liner built in China, the Aida Huacheng; the Green Energy Wind gas carrier with a capacity of 174,000 cubic meters; and the world's first dual-fuel SPA LNG carrier with wind-assisted propulsion and a displacement of 114,000 tons. These projects highlight China's technological potential and efficiency in shipbuilding.

Maritime transport also showed steady growth in the first quarter. The country's maritime cargo volume increased by 6.8 percent year-on-year, while cargo turnover grew by 9.4 percent.

Marine tourism also had a strong start. Passenger traffic increased by 6.3 percent, and passenger volume grew by 11.6 percent compared to the previous year.