ZIM records $6.6 million loss in third quarter

Higher volumes are not able to offset a decline in freight rates and higher fuel costs.    ZIM reported a net loss of $6.6 million in the third quarter compared to a net profit of $25.2 million in the third quarter of 2017.
   Total revenues were $840.7 million in the third quarter, a 2.9 percent increase over the $816.7 million recorded in the third quarter last year.
   The increase in revenue was not as strong as the increase in volume because of lower freight rates. ZIM carried 730,000 TEUs in the third quarter, a 6.1 percent increase over the third quarter last year, but the average freight rate in the third quarter 2018 was $1,006 per TEU, 4.9 percent lower than it was in the third quarter of 2017.
   “The instability and volatility in the market, including significant uncertainties in the global trade, continue to affect the market environment,” said ZIM.
   “Since the fourth quarter of 2017, freight rates have decreased while bunker prices as well as charter rates increased, negatively affecting the industry as a whole. In the third quarter of 2018, freight rates started to recover in most trades, while bunker prices continued to increase.”
   Eli Glickman, the president and chief executive officer of ZIM, said the third quarter this year “was characterized by a freight rates increase and the continued rise in fuel costs.”
   He said a strategic alliance that ZIM has entered into with the 2M Alliance of Maersk and MSC in the Asia-U.S. East Coast trades in September of this year is “beginning to contribute to our overall results, and we expect it to bear more fruits in the coming quarters. We have a clear path forward, and we remain committed to excellent customer service, as well as providing innovative quality solutions for our customers.”