China lines suffer in first half

China lines suffer in first half    The China COSCO Group, parent of COSCO Container Lines, suffered a first half net loss of about $430 million, capping a rough week in which its longtime chief executive Wei Jiafu stood down as well as the carrier being accused of missing charter payments on bulk vessels.
   'There is excessive supply in the market,” the line said in a statement to the Hong Kong Stock Exchange. 'In the second half of the year, it is expected that the delivery of 8000-plus-TEU large vessels will put pressure (on) the major routes.”
   According to a Bloomberg report, 'China COSCO's container-shipping sales fell 3.4 percent in the first half, even as volumes increased 9.8 percent.' In calculating the line's average rates on the major east/west trades, the news service said 'average rates on transpacific routes declined 4 percent and Asia/Europe rates dropped 28 percent.'
   COSCO's compatriot carrier, China Shipping, sustained a roughly $100 million net loss. China Shipping's container volume slumped 3.3 percent to 3.4 million TEUs, while revenue fell 12.9 percent to $2.2 billion.
Both lines posted a profit in the corresponding period in 2010.