ECONOMIC SLOWDOWN HITS TROPICAL’S 2ND-QUARTER RESULTS

ECONOMIC SLOWDOWN HITS TROPICAL’S 2ND-QUARTER RESULTS    Tropical Shipping, the profitable Florida/Caribbean container shipping line, posted 39-percent lower operating income of $3.6 million for the second quarter, because of a fall in cargo volumes and the adverse impact of the economic slow-down.
   Revenue for the latest quarter was $54.3 million, down 11 percent from the same quarter last year.
   For the first six months of the year, operating income fell to $6.9 million, compared to $11.5 million in the corresponding period last year, and revenue decreased to $113 million, from $120.5 million.
   “Decreases for both periods are due to lower volumes shipped, which more than offset the positive impact of slightly higher average rates,” a spokesman for the parent company of Tropical Shipping said. “Lower volumes continue to be attributable to a slow down in the economy and fewer construction projects throughout the Caribbean region.”