By Mike Wackett,

(The Loadstar)– Maersk Line continued to be at a loss in the 3rd quarter, today reporting a bottom line of $116m on the back of a 16% year-on-year decrease in products prices.

However, team president Soren Skou suggested that in advance of the yearly Asia-Europe agreement arrangements period, the service provider was “in a better position than this time last year”, as a result of greater area prices and also carrier “flights to safety” complying with the Hanjin collision.

The container line loss compares to an earnings of $264m in the very same duration in 2014, regardless of a quantity development of 11% to 5.4 m teu.

It brings the service provider’s nine-month loss to $230m and also has actually compelled an unfavorable full-year outcome forecast.

Q3 profits of $5.4 bn were 11% less than the very same duration in 2014, dragged down by a 16% dive in ordinary products prices to $905 per teu– although products prices boosted 5.5% on the previous quarter, the initial quarter-on-quarter boost because Q3 2014.

At the team’s acting outcomes discussion today, Mr Skou connected Maersk’s considerably above-par quantity development to a mix of boosted filling on backhaul professions and also brand-new organization obtained after Hanjin Shipping got in receivership on 31 August.

“Maersk Line captured more than its fair share of Hanjin business,” stated Mr Skou, including that the line was “probably seen as a safe place”.

He included: “Hanjin had around 3% of the global market, so this was like a whole year of global growth coming onto the market overnight.”

He stated he expected that the “Hanjin effect” would certainly have an effect on products prices– currently forthcoming right away market, which makes up around 50% of Maersk Line’s organization– and also was most likely to affect Asia-Europe agreement conversations and also those for the transpacific profession following year.

“To my knowledge, we haven’t closed any Asia-Europe contracts yet,” stated Mr Skou, recommending that Maersk Line had the top hand in those price arrangements.

On the topic of ability, Maersk Line is set up to take distribution of eleven 19,600 teu second-generation Triple- E vessels in 2017 and also 2018. Mr Skou stated the service provider had sufficient versatility with its orderbook and also charter fleet to readjust as necessary.

And he was not unduly worried concerning the capability of competitors to charter ships at low everyday hire prices.

“Many carriers are significantly loss-making,” he stated. “Even a free charter is not cheap enough.”

Lars Jensen, president and also companion at SeaIntelligence Consulting, explained the 11% quantity development as a “show of force by Maersk Line”.

He included: “Now we have to look out for counter moves by the new alliances in 2017/ Will they give up this market share to Maersk permanently, or will we enter a new phase of the price war?”

Meanwhile, APM Terminals provided an earnings of $131m in the quarter, compared to $175m in the very same duration in 2014, regardless of container throughput at its terminals boosting to 9.5 m teu from 8.9 m teu in the very same duration in 2014.

However, productivity at APM Terminals stays under stress in Latin America, North Europe and also Africa, as a result of lining network adjustments and also proceeding weak market problems.

As a component of Maersk’s approach testimonial, Mr Skou stated, APM Terminals would certainly in future concentrate on “a better result from existing business” as opposed to “putting new flags in the ground”.

Forwarding arm Damco was struck by reduced prices and also money exchange variations, however however taped a third-quarter earnings of $15m, below $20m in 2014.

Outgoing team principal monetary police officer Trond Westlie thinks “the corner has been turned” at the 3PL.

Overall, the AP Møller Maersk team provided revenues of $438m in the quarter, compared to $778m in the very same duration of 2015, and also anticipates a full-year outcome “significantly below” in 2014’s $3.1 bn, at “below $1bn”.

APMM will certainly hold its delayed Capital Markets Day in Copenhagen on 13December Mr Skou stated even more information would certainly after that be offered concerning the restructuring of the team.

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