In terms of order value, South Korean shipbuilders outpaced their Chinese rivals as well.

South Korean shipbuilders won deals valued at a combined US$48.16 billion last year, higher than the comparable figure of US$19.2 billion for Chinese shipyards, the research institute said.

Last year, South Korean shipbuilders focused on high-priced vessels such as liquefied natural gas (LNG) carriers and offshore facilities.

But South Korean shipyards' order backlogs were smaller than those of Chinese rivals. South Korean shipbuilders' order backlogs came to 37.66 million CGTs, far lower than 44.99 million CGTs for Chinese shipbuilders, according to Clarkson.

In 2003, South Korea became the world's top shipbuilding nation by outstripping Japan in three key categories -- shipbuilding volume, order backlogs and new orders.

Chinese rivals outpaced South Korean shipyards in the number of new orders received and order backlogs in 2009 and 2010 as Chinese shipbuilders gobbled up new orders at cheap prices, while their South Korean counterparts have continued to focus on high-priced vessels and offshore facilities.