(Reuters) – Shipowner CMA CGM reported another sharp drop in quarterly profit on Friday as the rush on shipping triggered by the COVID-19 pandemic continues to fade.
However, volumes increased year-on-year as stock clearances in the United States were offset by strong demand in other parts of the world.
The economic slowdown has exacerbated the decline in shipping prices from record levels reached following the COVID-19 pandemic, which had enabled CMA CGM, controlled by the founding Saadé family, to turn a profit record.
The maritime transport giant based in Marseille was thus cautious for 2024, the prospects of a rebound in world trade when American companies have finished reducing their stocks being tempered by weak economic growth and expected new capacities continuing to decline. weigh on freight rates.
Danish rival Maersk said last week it would cut 10,000 jobs, citing market conditions that remain weak.
Freight rates have stabilized around 2019 levels, but it is very difficult to anticipate the trend in 2024, Ramon Fernandez, CMA CGM’s chief financial officer, told reporters.
“There are probably more risks than opportunities on the demand side,” he said.
CONCERNS ABOUT THE OFFER
A potential 9% increase in global capacity in 2024, on top of an expected 5% expansion in the second half of this year, also raises supply concerns after the post-pandemic surge in ship orders, Fernandez said.
Scrapping older ships, partly driven by the sector’s adaptation to new emissions regulations in Europe, would be crucial to balancing supply, he added, clarifying that the group would not had canceled any of his orders.
Volumes transported by CMA CGM increased by 0.9% year-on-year, putting an end to the decline observed in the first half of the year, with strong demand on North-South lines having offset the decline on East-West lines affected by destocking in United States, Fernandez said.
CMA CGM is expected to benefit from a slight increase in volumes for the full year due to seasonal demand in the fourth quarter, it added.
The group reported third-quarter net profit of $388 million, down from $7.04 billion a year earlier.
Ebitda fell to $2 billion from $9.1 billion in the same period of 2022.
(Gus Trompiz report, French version Diana Mandiá, edited by Blandine Hénault)
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