Swiss trader Gunvor Group has seen profit hit by a legal settlement in Ecuador and wider economic woes.
The charterer and shipowner said net earnings in 2023 were $1.25bn, against $2.36bn the year before.
“Gunvor’s trading performance was broad-based, once again across all desks and geographies, with meaningful contributions from the group’s assets, including refining and shipping,” the group said.
Revenue fell to $127bn from $150bn in 2022, reflecting the decline in commodities prices.
However, traded volumes rose to 177m tonnes from 165m tonnes, “driven by the growth in new talent and business lines”.
The result includes $467m in provisions related to settlement of a corruption case in Ecuador.
The trader pleaded guilty and agreed to pay $661m to end an investigation into the bribery of officials at Ecuador’s state-owned oil company.
Gunvor was behind a complex bribery scheme for nearly a decade in return for securing deals that ultimately benefited the company, the US Justice Department said.
Market conditions were broadly less favourable for commodities trading than the previous year, Gunvor said.
“While sanctions-related market dislocations resulting from the war in Ukraine continued, commodities markets struggled with numerous new headwinds, including a weaker than expected Chinese economy, monetary tightening, a stronger US dollar, and an oil supply cut by Opec+,” the company added.
Prices normalise
The very high price volatility across energy commodities in 2022 gradually decreased over 2023, and prices normalised, particularly in natural gas. By the end of the year, they achieved a level consistent with long-term trends, the group explained.
Equity rose $6.2bn compared with $5.3bn the year before.
This “allows for greater access to liquidity and the ability to move quickly on trading and investment opportunities as they arise”, the company said.
“Throughout 2023, Gunvor’s focus on advanced analytics and trading systems, and an infusion of new talent and business lines, enabled the group to effectively navigate normalising market conditions to deliver the second strongest trading result in the group’s history,” Gunvor added.
