CSAV reports $58.5 million loss

CSAV reported a $58.5 million in the second quarter of 2014.    CSAV said it had a net loss of $58.5 million in the second quarter, compared with a $34.3 million profit in the same 2013 period.
   The profit came partly benefited from the pre-payment of debt maintained with AFLAC and because of the reorganization of its Brazilian subsidiaries.
   CSAV said it operating revenue was $734.9 million in the second quarter, compared with $832.7 million in the second quarter of 2013.
   The company transported 504,400 TEU in the second quarter of 2014, compared with 467,400 TEU in the second quarter of 2013.
   The Santiago, Chile-based company, which has entered into an agreement for its container business to be merged with Hapag-Lloyd, said, “Results were influenced by the industry’s low freight rates and by the $18.6-million loss for the sale of the company’s participation in the joint-venture with DryLog in the solid bulk business.
   “The second quarter of 2014 results are mainly due to the complex scenario that the shipping industry continues facing, which shows low rates as compared to the first quarter of the year and particularly compared to the second quarter of 2013.”
   CSAV said during the second quarter of 2014, freight rates decreased by 9.9 percent compared to the same period of the previous year.
   Oscar Hasbun, chief executive officer of CSAV, said, “The industry continues facing a very complex and unstable freight rate scenario. In spite of the above, CSAV continues showing a significant improvement in its cost structure.”
   The company said compared with the second quarter of 2013, its container shipping cost per TEU dropped 13 percent.
   “This positive impact is basically explained by all the initiatives of cost reduction taken by the company, the introduction to our fleet of most of the vessels of 8,000 TEU, which were previously chartered out to Maersk, and also to the better utilization levels of the vessels,” he said. “We expect our cost structure to continue improving with the deployment of the newbuildings currently under construction, which will provide a significant improvement from bunker and charter savings during the second half of 2015.”
   CSAV said a significant increase in spot freight rates can be seen particularly in the trades from Asia to its main markets on  the West and East Coasts of South America.
   “However, this increase in the spot rate has been offset by the one-year contracts that were renewed during the first quarter of the year at lower rates compared to the previous year. We expect to face the new contract renewal period that starts at the end of the year in more favorable conditions than the ones prevailing at the beginning of the year. Therefore, basically the overall freight rates for the third quarter remain flat compared to the second quarter of the year,” the company said.
   It continued, “The industry’s trends of decreasing orderbook and high scrapping, coupled with high utilization rates in the East-West and North-South trades, anticipate the possibility of future increases in freight rates.”