China's shipbuilding industry continued to lead globally in the first five months of this year with double-digit increases in both output and new orders, industry data showed.

The country's shipbuilding output reached 16.47 million deadweight tons (dwt) in the period, up 15.4 percent year-on-year, according to the China Association of the National Shipbuilding Industry.

New orders in China's shipbuilding sector surged 49.5 percent from a year earlier to total 26.45 million dwt, the association said.

The output accounts for 48.1 percent of the global total, and new orders take up a 67.3 percent share, the data revealed.

Businesses improved for firms in the industry as 74 companies monitored by the association raked in 137.64 billion yuan ($19 billion) in revenue during the period, up 31.3 percent year-on-year.