COPENHAGEN Maersk on Wednesday reinstated full-year guidance above its forecast at the beginning of the year, even as the shipping group expects demand for moving containers at sea to remain below normal levels in the third quarter.
Maersk, which handles one in every five containers shipped by sea worldwide, posted second-quarter revenue and earnings above expectations, as a sharp drop in volumes was partly offset by higher freight rates, lower fuel prices and lower costs in the quarter.
“With a strong result and a strong balance sheet we are well positioned to financially and strategically come out stronger of the crisis,” Chief Executive Soren Skou said in a statement.
Maersk said it expected earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortisation (EBITDA) at $6-$7 billion before restructuring and integration costs, compared to the $5.5 billion forecast at the beginning of the year.
Global demand for containers is still forecast to decline this year compared to last year, with a mid-single digit contraction in the third quarter, Maersk said.
EBITDA rose 25% to $1.7 billion in the second quarter, above the 1.6 billion forecast by analysts in a Refinitiv poll.
Revenue fell 7% to $9.0 billion in the period, compared to the expected 8.9 billion.
($1 = 6.2376 Danish crowns)
Disclaimer: This post has been auto-published from an agency feed without any modifications to the text and has not been reviewed by an editor
Comments
0 comment