HHLA reports loss despite higher revenue

HHLA reports loss despite higher revenue    Hamburg-based terminal and intermodal operator Hamburger Hafen- und Lagerhaus AG (HHLA) suffered an after-tax loss of 8.5 million euros ($10.5 million) in 2003, despite a 25-percent jump in revenue to 638 million euros ($790 million) and higher-than-expected growth in container traffic in the port of Hamburg.
   HHLA said the after-tax deficit was due to startup costs at its Altenwerder and Luebeck terminals and one-off taxes.
   However, the company's operating profit was stable at 26 million euros ($32 million) in 2003, the same as in the previous year.
   HHLA reported it handled a record number of containers last year. Revenue from inland container transport, including that of the German rail operator Transfracht, rose 23 percent in 2003.
   During its first full year of operation, the Altenwerder container terminal in Hamburg handled 874,000 TEUs.
   HHLA said it plans to increase its capacity “by at least 5 million TEUs” during the next six years.
   The first part of 2004 saw the company’s Hamburg terminals and its inland business raise their traffic by more than 20 percent, HHLA said.
   It predicts group earnings after taxes will rise this year.