HHLA profit surges 43% in first half

HHLA profit surges 43% in first half First half profit after tax and minority interests at North Europe port logistics company Hamburger Hafen und Logistik AG jumped 43 percent to 89 million euros ($142 million) after strong container and intermodal volume gains.
   HHLA’s earnings before interest and tax (EBIT) rose 38.7 percent to 192.5 million euros ($306 million), while revenue improved 17.6 percent to 660 million euros ($1.05 billion).
   After six months of 2008, HHLA's container terminals in Hamburg, Germany, and Odessa in the Ukraine handled 3.74 million TEUs, up 7.4 percent year on year. The company's intermodal segment increased throughput 16.4 percent to 936,000 TEUs with the development of services with Central and Eastern Europe making a “special contribution.”
   'We are proud that we have yet again succeeded in increasing profitability while being heavily utilized,' said Klaus-Dieter Peters, chief executive officer. 'Despite the clouding over of the world economic environment, we are standing by our goals for revenues and earnings. For the 2008 financial year that means double-digit growth in revenues to around 1.3 billion euros. For EBIT at group level we are reckoning with a figure between 320 and 350 million euros.”
   HHLA added it plans to spend 1.5 billion euros expanding its handling capacities, hinterland network and its logistics activities up to 2012.