The world's largest container carrier, A.P. Moller-Maersk A/S, has raised its annual profit forecast for the second time in a month and a half, citing rising freight rates and unexpectedly high resilience of the global economy as the main reasons. Maritime freight transport continues to grow even amid rising costs:
Hapag-Lloyd AG reports a strong flow of exports from Asia and a revival of demand from the U.S., despite incurring nearly $600 million in losses in the last quarter due to the conflict in the Middle East:
Dubai-based DP World also recorded growth in revenue and container transport volumes in the first half of the year, despite a sharp decline in vessel entries at Jebel Ali port. The results of major carriers indicate the stability of consumer and business demand amid the Russia-Ukraine conflict, as well as tensions between the U.S. and Iran in the Strait of Hormuz and high energy prices:
Additional pressure on the industry is exerted by abnormal weather conditions. Drought has lowered water levels in critical waterways in North America and Europe, congestion has increased in Chinese ports, and long queues have formed in the Panama Canal. According to Maersk's CEO Vincent Clerc, freight rates will remain highly volatile under these conditions:
A key driver of growth is also global electrification. According to Clerc, the development of energy production and storage systems, electric vehicles, data centers, and cooling systems is increasing demand for container transport while simultaneously changing the structure of the transported cargo:
The growth is not limited to the container segment. D/S Norden A/S's CEO Jan Rindbo notes high demand for the transportation of grains, iron ore, and steel, as well as for special cargoes, including batteries and wind turbine blades:
