TANKERS BOOST WILH. WILHELMSEN’S 1ST-QUARTER RESULTS

TANKERS BOOST WILH. WILHELMSEN’S 1ST-QUARTER RESULTS    Wilh. Wilhelmsen ASA, the Scandinavian shipping group, posted net earnings of $7 million for the first quarter, compared to a loss of $4 million in the same quarter in 2000, as its tanker shipping business returned to the black.
   The group’s operating result for the latest quarter was a profit of $19 million, compared to a deficit of $1 million a year earlier. During the same period, gross revenue increased to $206 million, from $202 million.
   Wilh. Wilhelmsen said that its latest results “were marked by a substantial improvement in results for the tanker business, operating income on a par with last year in the liner and car carrier business, and overall good results from the Barber International and Barwil Agencies service companies.”
   The group’s tanker activities produced a net income of $3 million in the first quarter, compared to a loss of $16 million in January-March 2000.
   The liner and car-carrier operations of the group, operated through the 50-50 joint venture Wallenius Wilhelmsen Lines, posted a net income of $1 million in the latest quarter, down from $11 million in the same quarter last year. Operating income was $15 million, compared to $16 million in the first quarter of 2000. Gross revenue was $169 million, down from $171 million.
   “Wallenius Wilhelmsen Lines experienced a relatively weak start to the year, primarily because car exports from Korea and Japan were down to the U.S. and Europe,” the group said. “However, shipment of other cargo categories remained relatively buoyant.”
   The Wilh. Wilhelmsen group warned that parts of Wallenius Wilhelmsen Lines’ car carrier and roll-on/roll-off markets, particularly car shipments from the Far East, “are showing clear signs of weakness.” But the markets for ro-ro and non-containerizable cargo “are still relatively good.”
   Certain trades are still affected by some overcapacity, it added.