Hapag-Lloyd CEO Expects Shipping To Remain Strong

Hapag-Lloyd’s chief executive said on Thursday he expects container volumes to remain strong, driven by global transport demand and seen as a trade indicator and barometer of global economic health.

The German company said the volume of twenty-foot equivalent containers (TEUs) transported by 292 ships rose to 9.3 million tonnes in the nine months from January to September, up 5% from 8.9 million tonnes in the same period last year.

“I don’t think there’s much change in the fourth quarter,” Hapag-Lloyd CEO Happen Janssen told Reuters after announcing the nine-month results of the world’s fifth-largest container shipping group.

Global container throughput has risen 6.3% so far this year, the highest growth rate since 2021, Hapag-Lloyd said in a presentation slide for an analyst meeting.

However, rising costs, which outweighed the increase in freight rates, led to a 47% drop in Hapag-Lloyd’s net profit as commercial traffic was diverted across Africa to avoid the Suez Canal, which was disrupted by attacks by Houthi militants.

Hapag-Lloyd’s nine-month average freight rate was $1,467 per TEU, down 9% year-on-year.

“At the moment, there is no end in sight,” Halpen-Jensen said of the Suez Canal crisis.

This leaves Hapag-Lloyd’s full-year earnings forecast close to 2023 levels, despite an upward revision to the forecast last month.

Commenting on Donald Trump’s victory in the U.S. presidential election, Halpen-Jensen said positive macroeconomic drivers could be offset by the harmful effects of tariffs.

President-elect Trump has made import tariffs a key pillar of his campaign to return to the White House.