Global shipping giant Hapag-Lloyd closed the third quarter of the year with a net profit of €8.2m, up from €3.2m last year, and an operating result €65.6m. down from €80.9mm
According to the group, it was able to generate a positive operating result of €25.9m in the first nine months of 2016.
“The market has been very difficult so far this year, but in that environment Hapag-Lloyd has performed relatively well, which underlines our competitiveness, and we are pleased to report a net profit in the third quarter” said Rolf Habben Jansen, CEO of Hapag-Lloyd. “The overall results so far this year remain unsatisfactory, but the net profit in the third quarter indicates that we are on the right track and that our efforts to further reduce costs and to leverage economies of scale are paying off.
'Our main focus for the upcoming quarters will be to further optimise our cost position, ensure a smooth implementation of The Alliance and to complete the transaction with UASC, to further solidify our position in this consolidating industry,' he added.
In the first nine months of 2016, Hapag-Lloyd transported a total of 5.65m TEU, around 1.3 per cent more than in the prior year period.
The average freight rate fell sharply, decreasing by 17.7 per cent year-on-year in the period from January to September to US$1,037 per TEU, a decline partly due to a fall in bunker prices compared with the previous year, but also due to prevailing overcapacity in the main trades combined with modest demand growth.
The substantially lower rate level had a noticeable impact on the company’s revenue of €5.7bn in the first nine months of 2016, which was approximately €1.1bn down on the previous year. At the same time transport expenses also fell considerably by €787.7m, or 14.2 per cent, to just under €4.8bn in the same period.