UK group John Swire & Sons has pledged to acquire more modern ships after selling older tonnage in weaker markets.
The 200-year-old parent of Swire Group revealed in accounts filed to Companies House that net profit slid to £657m ($832m) in 2023, from £818m the year before.
Revenue from shipping, aviation and property was up at £14.7bn versus £14.3bn.
But administrative and financial costs rose and the operating margin shrank to 9.6% from 11.9% year on year.
Chairman Barnaby Swire said there was a “gradual return to normality” in shipping businesses last year after the extraordinary post-pandemic highs experienced by container ships in 2022.
Container ship arm Swire Shipping and bulker division Swire Bulk produced a combined revenue of £1.9bn.
Swire Shipping’s freight rates in Pacific markets retained some strength, despite an increase in competition, Swire explained.
Healthy operating profit was recorded at both companies.
Swire Bulk saw a year of falling rates, however.
‘Sensible charter cover’
The chairman said that as the market turned, the company took cover at “sensible levels, which served it well as prospects continued to decline.”
Some older ships were sold for good returns with a view to investing in newer tonnage “in due course”, Swire added.
Bulkers were brought in on charter to serve customers as fleet numbers fell a little.
The group retains “significant liquidity”, the chairman added.
Swire Shipping also announced the appointment of Randy Selvaratnam as the new chief commercial officer.
He has more than 30 years of experience in shipping.
Selvaratnam’s journey with Swire began 20 years ago with Steamships, the sister company in Papua New Guinea.
Since then, he has held regional, country and commercial leadership roles with Swire Shipping across Australia, New Zealand, Papua New Guinea, China and Singapore.
“With his deep understanding of our diverse markets, we are confident that his expertise will be invaluable as we continue to navigate this evolving maritime landscape,” Swire said.
2021 was the first year that Swire’s shipping unit China Navigation Co operated as two stand-alone companies, Swire Shipping and Swire Bulk.
Swire Shipping manages its own fleet and most of the Swire Bulk fleet too.
VesselsValue lists 46 ships in the fleet, worth $1bn.
The parent company is responsible for formulating and directing strategy for the group, which has 104,000 staff worldwide.
The main business is in China and Hong Kong, with shipping focused on the Pacific and Australasia.
