Independent journal on economy and transport policy
21:21 GMT+2
CENTRO INTERNAZIONALE STUDI CONTAINERS
ANNO XXXVIII - Numero MAGGIO 2020
MARITIME TRANSPORT
MAERSK WARNS OF 20 - 25% DROP IN VOLUMES IN Q2
In the Maersk Q1 results statement ceo Soren Skou said: "Looking
into Q2 2020, visibility remains low as a result of the COVID-19
pandemic. We continue to support our customers in keeping their
supply chains running, however as global demand continues to be
significantly affected, we expect volumes in Q2 to decrease across
all businesses, possibly by as much as 20-25%."
Due to the impact of demand on the mainline east - west trades
Maersk blanked 90 sailings in Q1 leading to a 3.5% reduction
deployed capacity due to idle vessel. In Q1 volumes declined 5.7%
China by the almost complete halt in Chinese exports in February.
The Asia - Europe trade saw a 16% drop in volumes as a result.
As lockdowns due to the pandemic spread from China across the
globe in Q2 the container line expects to blank close to 140
sailings.
Looking ahead Mearsk said: "While the outlook is very
uncertain, it is expected that container demand will decline in 2020
compared to 2019. At present, it is difficult to predict the timing
and the shape of the recovery in global trade volumes with
confidence, as it will be determined by the interplay between the
path of the virus and government policies in relation to the
economy.
"As a reference point, WTO projects global merchandised
trade to decline by between 13-32% in 2020, and the IMF expects a
decrease of 11% (goods and services) but with a significant downside
risk."
Despite the impact of COVID-19 in the first quarter Maersk
reported 23% increase in EBITDA to $1.5bn compared to the same
period a year earlier, and a slight increase in revenues in Q1 this
year to $9.57bn compared $9.54bn in the same period in 2019.
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