Hapag-Lloyd to Seek Cost Cuts After Net Profit Slump
German container shipper Hapag-Lloyd said on Thursday the global oversupply of container ships and a crisis in the Red Sea will force it to cut costs in 2024, adapting sailings and ports following a bruising 83% fall in net profit.Ship operators face prolonged disruption while Yemen-based Houthi militants are attacking vessels travelling on one of the world's busiest routes, wiping out the benefit from higher freight rates with costly redirections around Africa.Hapag-Lloyd's problems chime with those of competitors such as Maersk and CMA CGM, exacerbated by the arrival of additional ships orde
Zim Reports Fourth Quarter Loss
ZIM Integrated Shipping Services has announced consolidated results for the three and 12 months ended December 31, 2023, noting a net loss for the fourth quarter of $147 million (compared to a net profit of $417 million in the fourth quarter of 2022).The net loss for the full year, including a $2.06 billion non-cash impairment loss, was $2.69 billion (compared to a net profit of $4.63 billion for the full year of 2022).Adjusted EBITDA for the fourth quarter was $190 million, a year-over-year decrease of 80%.
Xeneta Data Points to "Brutal" 2024 for Ocean Freight Carriers
Latest data from Xeneta suggests 2024 could be even more brutal than expected for carriers in the ocean freight shipping market, as the Xeneta Shipping Index (XSI), which tracks real-time developments in global long-term contracted rates, today stands at 158.5 points, which is 62.3% lower than November 2022.“The XSI is an average of all long term contracts on the market – so in essence the global index is currently being propped up by those older contracts which were signed back in 2022 when rates were much higher," said Emily Stausbøll, Market Analyst, Xeneta.
Hapag-Lloyd Posts 77% Drop in Nine-month Net Profit, Cuts Outlook
German container shipper Hapag-Lloyd on Thursday posted a net profit of 3.2 billion euros ($3.43 billion) for the first nine months of 2023, down by 77% from a year earlier, and cut its forecasts for full-year earnings.Net profit was down from 13.8 billion euros in comparable 2022 when the shipping industry, a proxy for global trade, boomed amid post-pandemic recovery and because logistics disruptions drove up prices for consumers.This year, the global economic slowdown and the clearing of port log-jams sent freight rates down sharply…
ZIM 2Q Revenues Plunge 62%
Pain in the containershipping sector is not uncommon in 2023, and Israel's ZIM Integrated Shipping Services Ltd. (NYSE: ZIM) is no exception, today reporting 2Q and six month results:Net loss for the second quarter was $213 million, negatively impacted by a non-cash after tax item of $51 million related to the redelivery of certain vessels.Operating loss (EBIT) for the second quarter was $168 million, compared to operating income of $1,764 million in the second quarter of 2022Revenues for the second quarter were $1…
Hapag-Lloyd Net Profit Dives 67% in H1
German container shipper Hapag-Lloyd HLAG.DE on Thursday posted net profit of 2.9 billion euros ($3.18 billion) for the first half of 2023, down by 67% from a year earlier, but maintained its full year earnings forecast.The net profit compared with 8.7 billion euros in 2022 when shipping, a proxy for global trade, enjoyed a boom as economic growth rebounded following the end of pandemic lockdowns and as logistics disruptions raised freight rates for customers. Rates have since fallen as logjams have eased and the economy is slowing.
Container Shipping Freight Rates Are Too Low, Says Hapag Lloyd CEO
Global container shipping freight rates have reached unsustainable levels and must rebound, the chief executive of Germany's Hapag Lloyd, the world's number five operator by volume, said on Tuesday."There are spot rates that are clearly below cost," said CEO Rolf Habben Jansen in a call with journalists."In the long run, that typically does not hold.
HAV Group Set to Acquire Undheim Systems, Adding DP Capabilities
Norway's HAV Group ASA has agreed to acquire Undheim Systems AS, a provider of dynamic positioning (DP) systems for vessels."The planned technology acquisition is a strategic move that accelerates HAV Group's plans to offer digital functionality that meets the global maritime market's needs for decision support tools and autonomous ship operations," HAV Group said.“HAV Group already provides digital decision support systems to vessels in order to cut operating expenditure and emissions to air.
'Party is over': Hapag Lloyd CEO Says Freight Rates to Keep Declining
Container freight rates will keep declining in the current realignment of shipping demand and supply, said the chief executive of Germany's liner Hapag Lloyd, the world's number five by transport capacity."The party is over. We are back to a normal shipping business," CEO Rolf Habben Jansen told reporters at a briefing late on Tuesday on the state of the market, in which his company reported sky-high profits for three years running."Now we have to fight for every box again to get our ships full," he said.
Hapag-Lloyd Net Profit More Than Triples
German container shipping group Hapag-Lloyd on Thursday reported first-quarter net profit of 4.2 billion euros ($4.4 billion), more than triple the number a year ago and, forecast another strong performance for the second quarter."The year has got off to an exceptionally strong start on the whole, and whilst there have been first signs that the market has passed its peak, we also expect a strong second quarter," Chief Executive Rolf Habben Jansen said.Jansen also said that currently global supply chains remained under significant pressure…
ZIM Announces Record Financial Year in 2021
Net Income of $4.65 Billion, Adjusted EBITDA of $6.60 billion, and Adjusted EBIT of $5.82 billionAs the containershipping industry enjoys its greatest boom of a generation, ZIM Integrated Shipping Services Ltd. (NYSE: ZIM) announced its consolidated results for the three and 12 months ended December 31, 2021.Net income for the fourth quarter was $1.71 billion (compared to $366 million in the fourth quarter of 2020), a year-over-year increase of 366%, or $14.17 per diluted share…
Container Shipping: Rates Dip in January, Fundamentals Strong says Xeneta
Long-term contracted ocean freight rates fell 3.6% in January, according to the latest Xeneta Shipping Index (XSI) Public Indices, the second consecutive monthly rates decline following 14 straight months of increases. Despite the recent stumble, contracted rates stand 98.1% up year-on-year.“The logistics chain remains stressed,” said Patrik Berglund, CEO of Oslo-based Xeneta, “with demand outstripping supply, port congestion, a lack of equipment and the ongoing pandemic impacting across key global trades.
Hapag-Lloyd Profit Soars 10-fold on Record Freight Rates
German container shipping line Hapag-Lloyd reported a more than 10-fold surge in nine-month net profit on Friday, citing record freight rates amid scarce transport capacity and rising transport volumes.The world's fifth biggest operator said net profit climbed to 5.6 billion euros ($6.41 billion) in the January-September period, from 538 million euros a year earlier.It expects earnings momentum to remain at a high level for the rest of the year while operators and customers across…
Maersk Lifts 2021 Outlook Again as Freight Rates Rise
Danish shipping group A.P. Moller-Maersk lifted its 2021 outlook again on Thursday, riding the rise in freight rates which has resulted from a congested global supply chain.The coronavirus pandemic has prompted shortages of container ships and logjams at ports at a time of high consumer spending, sending the cost of transporting freight to record levels."The strong result is driven by the continuation of the exceptional market situation within Ocean, which have led to further increases in both long- and short-term container freight rates…
Container Shipping Giant Hapag-Lloyd Posts Near 10-fold Profit Rise in H1
German container shipping line Hapag-Lloyd on Thursday reported a nearly 10-fold increase in first-half net profit, citing surging freight rates amid scarce transport capacities.The group, the world's number five in the industry, said net profit climbed to 2.7 billion euros ($3.28 billion) from 285 million euros a year earlier.It said it did not expect any normalization in global supply chains which have seen severe infrastructure bottlenecks due to the coronavirus crisis."We are naturally pleased by this extraordinary financial result," said chief executive Rolf Habben Jansen."But the bottlen
Hapag-Lloyd Reports Strong First Quarter
German container shipper Hapag-Lloyd said on Wednesday it increased its net profit in the first quarter to 1.2 billion euros ($1.45 billion) and kept up its guidance for "clearly higher" full year earnings."We concluded the first quarter with a very positive financial result and look back overall on a solid start to the year," said Rolf Habben Jansen, chief executive of Hapag-Lloyd, the world's number five container liner.Its net profit had slumped to 25 million euros a year ago as the coronavirus pandemic hit.Citing high demand for container transport and higher freight rate income, the compa
Maersk Lifts Outlook on Surging Demand
Shipping group Maersk lifted its full-year forecasts after a strong first-quarter performance driven by high demand which has led to supply bottlenecks and higher freight rates.Shares in Maersk rose 5% in early trading.Maersk raised its outlook for underlying earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortisation (EBITDA) to $13-15 billion from $8.5-10.5 billion.It expects underlying EBIT of $9-11 billion, up from 4.3-6.3 billion previously, Maersk said in a statement released late Monday."The continued strong performance is mainly driven by the continuation of the exceptional market s
Hapag-Lloyd Avoids Forecast Due to Coronavirus Uncertainty
German container shipper Hapag-Lloyd said on Thursday it almost tripled its net result in 2020 due to lower costs and higher freight rates, but shied away from specifying 2021 results due to uncertainty in the coronavirus crisis.The net result in 2020 amounted to 935 million euros ($1.12 billion) compared with 373 million euros in 2019 after revenue rose 3% and freight rates increased 4%, it said in a statement.Hapag-Lloyd, the world’s fifth largest container line, expected to…
Hapag-Lloyd Expects Higher Earnings for 2020
German container liner Hapag-Lloyd AG is confident of achieving higher earnings in 2020 as lower fuel prices cut shipping costs, demand in Asia recovers and fleet capacity is tight, chief executive Rolf Habben Jansen said on Friday."Oil prices have fallen sharply in the coronavirus crisis, that has given us tailwind, especially in the weak second quarter," said the head of the world's fifth biggest shipping firm in an interview with Reuters."Volumes have bounced back unexpectedly strongly in the third quarter and that will remain the case in the coming months," he added.A drop in bunker prices
Hapag-Lloyd Nearly Doubles H1 Profit
German container shipping line Hapag-Lloyd nearly doubled net profit in the first half of 2020 and kept its full-year outlook intact but warned that the coronavirus crisis bears indiscernible risks for its operations."We have not put the pandemic behind us. Compared to a normal situation, customers' booking behaviour is volatile," Chief Executive Rolf Habben Jansen told Reuters.Transport volumes at Hapag-Lloyd, the world's number five in the industry, were down 3.5% year-on-year…
Hapag-Lloyd Ups Profits, But Warns of Risks
German container shipping line Hapag-Lloyd on Wednesday reported preliminary results for the first half of 2020 showing core profits above those of the same 2019 period and upholding its guidance for full year earnings.However, the company said in an ad hoc announcement that the forecast was subject to “high uncertainty” due to risks related to the coronavirus crisis and its impact on the macroeconomy and global shipping.Hapag Lloyd achieved a 20.3% year-on-year rise in earnings before interest…
Hapag-Lloyd Keeps 2020 Guidance
German container liner Hapag-Lloyd on Friday stuck with its full-year earnings guidance but warned that supply disruptions and weaker demand due to the coronavirus crisis may lead to a revision of its forecast in the second half of 2020.The number five in worldwide container shipping, Hapag-Lloyd reported lower core profits in the first quarter on higher fuel costs and a devaluation of bunker stocks at the end of the period, when oil prices began to fall in a demand slump.The developments masked a positive impact from higher transport volumes - which increased by 4.3% to over 3 million 20-foot
Hapag-Lloyd Advises that Coronavirus to Slow Growth through H1
German container shipper Hapag-Lloyd on Friday said the coronavirus outbreak would curb business growth at least until mid-year after reporting a jump in 2019 profit and proposing a higher dividend.Larger rival Maersk on Friday also warned of a first-quarter hit from the outbreak and suspended its 2020 earnings outlook.Hapag CEO Rolf Habben Jansen said that impact from the coronavirus was impossible to determine for the time being, but the company was preparing for a blow to trade."Transport…