Another Container Shipping Line Expected To Show Turnaround

DENMARK – AP Moller Maersk, owners of Maersk Line, the largest container ship operator in the world will issue its third quarter figures on Wednesday and industry analysts are openly expecting a return to more profitable times. With other box shippers presenting figures which have exceeded expectations against the previous years results a higher profit forecast for the year is widely expected.

The group were expected to show a net profit of around $4 billion for the year based on earlier forecasts but steady growth in TEU numbers, a hardening attitude toward rates and prudent fiscal policies have seen all the box carriers pass expectations so far this year.

The market of course is still volatile and importers remain conservative but restocking has accounted for a steady improvement in container numbers and it is unlikely that we will see a major collapse in box traffic before the year end.