Show shows decline in JUL shipbuilding in g lloyds register reports total of ship tons in yards of world BIG DROP IN Us U S IN YEA YEAR total building here tons Is only about 40 per cent of record year ago japan shows small gain new york more than gross tons of merchant vessels are reported as being in the shipyards of the world says a statement by lloyds register compared with the total on january 1 the tons to be exact represents a decline of less than tons nearly 1 per cent the actual decline in shipbuilding activity has lieen been much sharper in the past three months than appears on the surface fur face says the statement the total reported tor for great britain gross tons is a gain of tons oer the january 1 1 I record d but there has been marked reduction in the volume of 0 tonnage e on which work Is actually proceeding lloyds register finds work suspended included in the total in the hands bands of 0 british shipyards are gross tons of vessels on which work has been suspended and an additional tons the completion of which has been postponed chiefly owing to tile the strike of 0 the chic which h has interfered rite with the fitting olt itt ot of a number of laige liners and other vessels the report continues cont mues taking this total of tons into consideration era tion therefore the total of 0 new ships on which work is proceeding in british shipyards is tons or about 20 per cent less than the t total in at the beginning of the year tear additional indications of the conditions in the british shipbuilding are furnished by the returns of launchings and new work begun luring during the first quarter of this year new keels represented only cross gross tons in comparison with for the last quarter of 1920 1020 and for the quarter ended april 1 1920 1020 launch sues lugs during durfay the quarter just ended represented tons as against tons for the last three months of 1920 even with the delays due to strikes and other causes therefore work Is being completed more rapidly rapid than new work is coming on decline in america returns Ite turns from american ship shipyards yaras show that the decline which has been in effect more than a year continue lloyds says the total construction reported under way ou on abill I 1 k i tons only more limn blizin 40 per cent of the american total n 1 year ago the aggregate for all other f countries except the united Sta states test great britain and germany fur for tile last named no official clat returns are avail able shows a gain of about towi tom over the january total lloyds eti eli mates the apparent world decrease in sill shipbuilding activity during the lust last quarter therefore has been not far from a million tons a decline 12 per cents cent the statement sis saas in some directions however gabia are shown in the volume of construe tion under way these are iiii i marked in the case of france baull now stands next to the united nim kin dom and the united states state s as a 1 chip ahl building nation having displaced 1101 land during the last quarter A mur boar ngo ago fir france lince with only tons tong IIII 1111 under way was led by japan italy aind III lJ lland olland and was constructing only tons more than the british tio today with inns wilding lull ding she he ha has nearly two and a 11 liila alf times the total for the british dominions and leads japan and italy liy by tons and tons ramn resi wet ct biely japan shows a small gain lit in slit lii total under construction as compart fd d with the previous quarter anti and italy holland and the british dominco i slight decreases de creasM |