SHARE
COPY LINK

MÆRSK

Denmark’s Maersk ups profit target by $2bn on Red Sea shipping woes

Danish shipping giant Maersk said Thursday it expects its underlying profit in 2024 to be $2 billion higher than its previous forecast as freight rates have increased amid the crisis in the Red Sea.

Denmark's Maersk ups profit target by $2bn on Red Sea shipping woes
Danish shipping giant Mærsk has raised its revenue forecast. Photo: Mads Claus Rasmussen/Ritzau Scanpix

Months of attacks by Yemen’s Iran-backed Huthis have prompted some shipping companies to detour around southern Africa to avoid the Red Sea route — which normally carries about 12 percent of global trade.

Maersk said in a statement that it was upgrading it’s 2024 full-year guidance “due to the continued supply chain disruption caused by the situation in the Red Sea, which is now expected to continue at least until the end of 2024, coupled with robust container market demand.”

The Danish company said it was now expecting its operating profit (earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation, and amortisation or EBITDA) to come in at between $9 and $11 billion for the full year.

Already in June, the shipping giant had upped its projected EBITDA by $3 billion to between $7 and $9 billion.

“Trading conditions remain subject to higher than normal volatility given the unpredictability of the Red Sea situation and the lack of clarity of supply and demand,” it added.

Maersk, which is due to report its second quarter earnings on August 7, said that based on preliminary figured it would report a revenue $12.8 billon, and EBITDA of $2.1 billion for the second quarter.

The Yemeni rebels have been launching drones and missiles at shipping in the Red Sea since last November, saying they are acting in solidarity with Palestinians during the Gaza war.

In July, a deadly Huthi drone strike on Tel Aviv prompted Israeli air strikes on Yemen’s port of Hodeida, which killed nine people and triggered a massive inferno.

Member comments

Log in here to leave a comment.
Become a Member to leave a comment.

LEGO

Denmark’s Lego stacks up profit as it gains market share

Lego, the world's largest toy maker, said on Wednesday that its net profit grew 16 percent in the first half of the year as it gained ground in a slowing market.

Denmark's Lego stacks up profit as it gains market share

The Danish company said its first-half sales rose 13 percent to 31 billion kroner ($4.6 billion) while net profit rose to 6 billion kroner.

“This growth has been driven by the Lego Group taking a higher share,” chief executive Niels Christiansen said in an interview with AFP.

The group, best known for its plastic bricks and whose name is a contraction of “play well” in Danish (“Leg godt”), launched around 300 new products during the first half, while continuing to see higher revenue from franchises such as Star Wars and Harry Potter.

The company also recently announced that it was forming a partnership with Nike to develop products and content together.

Sales rose the strongest in Europe and North America, but were slower in China.

“We will continue to build the Lego brand in China, to open stores. The potential is there,” Christiansen said.

The company is controlled by the descendants of its founder and is not quoted on the stock market.

SHOW COMMENTS