A double-digit uptick in volumes on the transpacific trade has failed to halt a miserable financial third quarter for Hong Kong liner giant Orient Overseas Container Line (OOCL).
The Cosco Group-controlled shipowner said revenue for the three months ending 30 September 2023 was down just over 65% year on year to $1.76bn.
OOCL said liftings inched up 6.7% to 1.86m teu from a year ago, but overall average revenue per teu decreased by 67.3% compared to the third quarter of last year.
For the first nine months of 2023, OOCL said its total revenues decreased by 61.8% over the same period of last year to $5.9bn.
Meanwhile, total liftings increased by 1.5% to 5.4m teu, but average revenue per teu was 62.4% lower than 12 months ago.
In results issued in late August 2023, OOCL said there were undoubtedly risks associated with the impact of inflation and higher interest rates on consumer spending and from the unclear economic outlook.
However, it also said that the market was very far from being in disaster territory and, of course, there were some indications that demand was improving and that shipping companies were behaving rationally in the face of fluctuating demand.
In August 2023, OOCL posted an 80% decline in 2023 first-half profit to $1.1bn from the $5.6bn seen a year ago.
Separately, OOCL has introduced a new China Cambodia Thailand Service — CCT1 & CCT2 — that it says will further strengthen its intra-Asia service network.
The shipowner’s CCT1 and CCT2 will directly connect Thailand, China, Vietnam and Cambodia to cater for the increasing demand in the market.
Port rotation for the CCT1 service will comprise Bangkok, Laem Chabang, Ho Chi Minh, Ningbo and Shanghai before returning to Laem Chabang and Bangkok.
Port rotation for the CCT2 service will be Bangkok, Laem Chabang, Ningbo, Shanghai, Shekou and Sihanoukville before returning to Bangkok.
The first sailing of CCT1 and CCT2 will start from Bangkok on 5 November and 4 November 2023, respectively, OOCL said.
