Container carrier profits soar on record volumes

04 Sep 2024 CW Team

McCown suggested that profit for the current quarter might also show a "material increase" due to the sustained strength in the international goods trade market. The container shipping industry, which handles 80 per cent of global merchandise trade, had experienced a boom during the pandemic due to high consumer demand and supply chain disruptions caused by Covid-19. However, the sector had recorded collective losses by the final quarter of 2023.

According to McCown, shipping lines are once again benefiting from favourable supply and demand conditions, with profits rebounding, though still far below the levels seen during the pandemic. Capacity had tightened due to Houthi attacks in the Red Sea, which forced vessels to take longer routes around southern Africa, pushing up spot container rates and contributing to port congestion.

Despite these challenges, global volumes reached a record high last quarter of 46.4 million units, measured in 20-foot containers, surpassing the previous record of 46.2 million units from the second quarter of 2021, according to data from Container Trades Statistics Ltd cited by McCown. Demand has been particularly strong in the US, where retailers and importers are stocking up amid concerns over potential new tariffs on Chinese goods and the possibility of a dockworkers' strike at East and Gulf Coast ports. McCown warned that a strike, particularly at key ports, could severely disrupt container networks for major carriers and have far-reaching consequences beyond US-related trade lanes.

It was reported that the global container shipping industry saw profits soar to over $10 billion in the second quarter, driven by record volumes and rising freight rates following Red Sea diversions, according to a recent analysis. Net income for major container carriers, including Denmark?s A.P. Moller-Maersk A/S and China?s Cosco Shipping Holdings Co., almost doubled from the first quarter and surpassed the $8.88 billion figure from the second quarter of 2023, as noted in a report released by industry expert John McCown. McCown suggested that profit for the current quarter might also show a material increase due to the sustained strength in the international goods trade market. The container shipping industry, which handles 80 per cent of global merchandise trade, had experienced a boom during the pandemic due to high consumer demand and supply chain disruptions caused by Covid-19. However, the sector had recorded collective losses by the final quarter of 2023. According to McCown, shipping lines are once again benefiting from favourable supply and demand conditions, with profits rebounding, though still far below the levels seen during the pandemic. Capacity had tightened due to Houthi attacks in the Red Sea, which forced vessels to take longer routes around southern Africa, pushing up spot container rates and contributing to port congestion. Despite these challenges, global volumes reached a record high last quarter of 46.4 million units, measured in 20-foot containers, surpassing the previous record of 46.2 million units from the second quarter of 2021, according to data from Container Trades Statistics Ltd cited by McCown. Demand has been particularly strong in the US, where retailers and importers are stocking up amid concerns over potential new tariffs on Chinese goods and the possibility of a dockworkers' strike at East and Gulf Coast ports. McCown warned that a strike, particularly at key ports, could severely disrupt container networks for major carriers and have far-reaching consequences beyond US-related trade lanes.

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