Hapag-Lloyd’s profits hit by rising fuel costs, charter rates

Hapag-Lloyd’s profits hit by rising fuel costs, charter rates    TUI AG, parent company of container and cruise shipping company Hapag-Lloyd, said Thursday that rapidly rising fuel costs and short-term vessel charter rates offset increases in volumes and revenue, resulting in its shipping activities only posting a moderate lift in net earnings for the second quarter and first half of the year.
   Hapag-Lloyd’s net earnings for the second quarter were 85 million euros ($105.5 million), up 1.2 percent compared to the same quarter last year. Revenues did better, rising 13.8 percent to 765 million euros ($949.5 million).
   For the year-to-date Hapag-Lloyd’s net earnings are up 3.8 percent to 110 million euros ($136.6 million), compared to 106 million euros after the first six months last year. Revenues have risen 15 percent to 1.43 billion euros ($1.77 billion) from 1.25 billion euros.
   Hapag-Lloyd Container Line said it transported 1.27 million TEUs in the first half of the year, an 8.3 percent increase over the 1.17 million TEUs carried in the first six months of 2004. The carrier said it handled 523,000 TEUs in the Asia/Europe market (up 7 percent); 331,000 TEUs in the transatlantic trade (up 9 percent); 330,000 TEUs in the transpacific market (up 9 percent); and 88,000 TEUs in the Latin American market (up 6 percent).
   “This sector (container shipping) also benefited from the continuing high level of freight rates, which in the first half of 2005 were on average 11 percent higher year-on-year,” TUI said.
   The shipping line said it operates 57 containerships with a combined capacity of 215,500, ranking 16th in American Shipper’s recent survey of the top 20 carriers ranked according to TEU capacity.