The cost of a new container vessel built by the government-run China Shipbuilding Corporation is three times that of a used vessel bought from another country. Thus most mercantile companies prefer to buy used foreign ships.
然而這些措施的收效並不大，直到去年六月施行「放寬輸入現成船年限辦法」，情形乃大為改觀，去年底國輪噸數突破了五百萬載重噸。所謂現成船，是指已造好、且營運了一段時間的輪船，通常價錢比新船便宜三分之一以上，多由國外進口。