It was announced on 21st November that Italian Shipbuilder Fincantieri had signed agreements with Carnival Corporation and China State Shipbuilding Corporation (CSSC) with the aim to explore the possibility of joint ventures in cruise shipbuilding for the Chinese market. This would be an unprecedented, three-way collaborative effort to build the first-ever cruise ships to be fabricated in China.

More particularly, Fincantieri would work with CSSC to develop cruise ship production capacity in China. Based on its experience as one of the world’s largest shipyards, Fincantieri would provide specialised services and components to support CSSC’s shipyards. Carnival would also work closely with CSSC and Fincantieri and con-tribute its expertise to create the vision, definition, and specifications for the Chinese-built cruise ships.

The Chinese Ministry of Transport (MOT) projects China to be the second largest global cruise market after the U.S.A in the coming years based on economic growth, increased spending power of Chinese consumers and growing demand for cruise holidays.