Tropical Shipping’s profits up in 4th quarter, down for year

Tropical ShippingÆs profits up in 4th quarter, down for year Nicor, the Illinois-based natural gas company and owners of U.S./Caribbean carrier Tropical Shipping, said today its fourth quarter operating income from shipping increased 2.8 percent to $18.5 million, while quarterly shipping revenue was flat at $110.3 million.
   For the whole of 2007, Nicor's operating income from shipping decreased 4.4 percent to $45.4 million from $47.5 million in 2006. Shipping revenue in 2007 increased 1.4 percent to $403.9 million.
   Nicor said the decline in annual shipping income was due to higher operating costs, which were partly offset by increased revenue due to higher cargo volumes. For the year, Tropical carried 206,600 TEUs, up 1.7 percent over 2006. However, the carrier’s average revenue per TEU was marginally down by 0.3 percent to $1,955.