South Korean shipbuilders, led by Hyundai Heavy Industries Co., are expected to face a protracted slump down the road with their new orders likely to plunge 27 percent this year, a report showed Tuesday.

According to the report compiled by the KEXIM Overseas Economic Research Institute, local shipbuilders received a combined $19.05 billion in the first nine months of the year, down 19.4 percent from a year earlier.

In terms of volume, their new orders also declined 2.5 percent on-year to reach 8.77 million compensated gross tons in the January-September period, it said.

The report estimated this year's orders at $24 billion, compared with last year's $32.71 billion. In terms of volume, new orders are also expected to decline 13 percent to 10.9 million CGTs.

Their combined order backlog is forecast to dip 9 percent on-year to 32.4 million CGTs this year, the report said.

The report said local shipbuilders are bearing the brunt of a severe slowdown in the global shipbuilding industry. In the first three quarters of the year, new orders placed around the globe dropped 42 percent on-year to reach $53.76 billion. In terms of volume, the corresponding figure was 23.34 million CGTs, down 33 percent over the cited period.

The report said the shipbuilding industry will continue to face a slump into next year on a contraction in demand for offshore facilities and a slump in the global shipping industry.

"Due to a severe slump in the offshore facility segment, the shipbuilding industry will continue to trend lower down the road,"

the report said. "Demand for LNG carriers, one of South Korean shipbuilders' cash cows, is also likely to contract for the time being."

The country's major shipbuilders already logged massive losses in the third quarter of the year, largely due to a series of order cancellations and a delay in the construction of offshore facilities.

According to the data, the country's big three shipyards -- Hyundai Heavy, Samsung Heavy Industries Co. and Daewoo Shipbuilding & Marine Engineering Co. -- racked up a combined operating loss of 2.1 trillion won ($1.85 billion) during the July-September period. (Yonhap)