LOWER RATES HIT HAPAG’S BOX REVENUE PROFIT

LOWER RATES HIT HAPAG’S BOX REVENUE PROFIT    A sharp fall in container freight rates last year cut profits and revenues at Hapag-Lloyd Container Line, the liner shipping arm of the Hapag-Lloyd AG group.
   The German group reported Monday that Hapag-Lloyd Container Line’s operating profit was nearly halved last year to 98 million euros ($102 million) from 186 million euros in 2001. Revenue from this unit declined to 2.1 billion euros ($2.2 billion) last year from 2.2 billion euros in the previous year, despite a 12 percent rise in traffic. Hapag-Lloyd Container Line shipped 1.9 million TEUs in 2002, up from 1.7 million TEUs the year before.
   “The dramatic decline in prices — rates fell by 15 to 20 percent from the year 2001 — was reflected in the revenues,” Hapag-Lloyd said.
   But Hapag-Lloyd said it has continued to increase its productivity in container shipping. “In 1996, we carried about 900,000 TEUs, with 3,300 employees,” said Gunther Casjens, board member of Hapag-Lloyd and head of Hapag-Lloyd Container Line. “Today we handle more than twice as many containers with the same number of personnel.”
   Hapag-Lloyd Container Line expects to carry 2.1 million TEUs this year.
   The Hapag-Lloyd AG group, which includes container shipping, cruises, forwarding, chemical logistics and mobile units businesses, reported a 2002 operating profit of 202 million euros ($210 million), down from 299 million euros in the previous year.