Monday, 18 May 2009 The Maersk Group suffered a torrid first quarter as a toxic combination of dropping volumes and collapsing freight rates played havoc with the Danish shipping giants bottom line. The group saw an overall net loss of US$373 million, in comparison to a net profit of US$1.05 billion in the same period last year, with volumes down by 14% and rates sliding by almost a quarter. Maersk predicted that it would also see a net loss for the second quarter and added that it would be possible that the net figure for the whole year would also be negative. “The result is impacted by the extraordinary global recession, which affects all our markets negatively. Our priorities for the Group remain unchanged,” said group CEO Nils S. Andersen. “We will continue our efforts to strengthen Maersk Line’s competitiveness, building the strength of our people and organisation, reducing costs and improving our environmental record, which will strengthen the Group both in the short and in the long-term,” Andersen added.
Source: Arabian Supply Chain
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