Higher container demand and elevated freight rates drove Maersk’s profitability boost in 2024, with a volume growth in terminals and solid improvements in most logistics and services products delivering its third-best financial year results. Meanwhile, the Danish carrier eyes that global container volume growth in 2025 will be around 4%.
The Danish giant A.P. Moller-Maersk saw its third-strongest financial performance in the company’s history in 2024 with growth across all segments and significantly improved profitability with Ebit increasing 65% to $6.5bn.
The company saw Ebit increase by $2.6bn to $6.5bn (up from $3.9bn the previous year), impacted by the increasing Ebitda, mainly from ocean.
The Copenhagen-based company, viewed as a barometer of world trade, has reported that revenue increased by $4.4bn to $55.5bn (up from $51.1bn the year earlier), with increases across segments.
The revenue improvement in ocean reflects the significant increases in freight rates, Maersk said, together with strong volumes in 2024.
According to the report posted by the owner, the company’s Ebitda stood at $12.1bn (compared to $9.6bn) with an increase in ocean of $2.2bn due to higher rates, and improvement in logistics and services of $196m and in terminals of $323m.
Vincent Clerc, CEO of A.P. Moller-Maersk, said: “Our ability to navigate shifting circumstances and ensure steady supply chains for our customers was put to the test throughout 2024.
“Our efforts were rewarded with record-high customer satisfaction. We successfully capitalized on increased demand while enhancing productivity and rigorously managing costs-all of which contributed to our strong financial performance.”
In its financial guidance, Maersk said it expects that 2025 is likely to show greater supply-demand imbalance with continued new deliveries in the container shipping industry and a potential re-opening of the Red Sea.
However, this imbalance may be largely offset by supply-side drivers and strong market demand, the Danish carrier added.
Furthermore, Maersk eyes that global container volume growth in 2025 will be around 4%.
