Container carriers have been reporting record profits in 2022 due to the surge in freight rates spurred by the COVID-19 pandemic. In the third quarter of 2022, Maersk made, on average, an EBIT of nearly 1,448 U.S. dollars per TEU transported, up from some 1,377 U.S. dollars per TEU a quarter before. HMM reported the highest EBIT/TEU in the third quarter of 2022, amounting to almost 1,988 U.S. dollars per TEU. Towards the end of 2022, however, freight rates have begun to decline, leading to lower profit margins for container carriers. In the first quarter of 2023, Maersk was earning 361.4 U.S. dollars per TEU transported.
Record profits for container carriers
The global container shipping industry made an estimated 110 billion U.S. dollars in operating profit in 2021. Due to the disruptions caused by the COVID-19 pandemic, global container freight rates soared between 2021 and 2022, peaking in September 2021 at nearly 10,400 U.S. dollars per 40-foot container. The rates started dropping at the end of 2022 and have since returned to the pre-pandemic levels.
Average EBIT per TEU of selected container carriers between Q1 2019 and Q1 2023, by carrier
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Sea-Intelligence. (June 8, 2023). Average EBIT per TEU of selected container carriers between Q1 2019 and Q1 2023, by carrier [Graph]. In Statista. Retrieved November 21, 2024, from https://www.statista.com/statistics/1372935/container-carriers-ebit-per-teu-quarterly/
Sea-Intelligence. "Average EBIT per TEU of selected container carriers between Q1 2019 and Q1 2023, by carrier." Chart. June 8, 2023. Statista. Accessed November 21, 2024. https://www.statista.com/statistics/1372935/container-carriers-ebit-per-teu-quarterly/
Sea-Intelligence. (2023). Average EBIT per TEU of selected container carriers between Q1 2019 and Q1 2023, by carrier. Statista. Statista Inc.. Accessed: November 21, 2024. https://www.statista.com/statistics/1372935/container-carriers-ebit-per-teu-quarterly/
Sea-Intelligence. "Average Ebit per Teu of Selected Container Carriers between Q1 2019 and Q1 2023, by Carrier." Statista, Statista Inc., 8 Jun 2023, https://www.statista.com/statistics/1372935/container-carriers-ebit-per-teu-quarterly/
Sea-Intelligence, Average EBIT per TEU of selected container carriers between Q1 2019 and Q1 2023, by carrier Statista, https://www.statista.com/statistics/1372935/container-carriers-ebit-per-teu-quarterly/ (last visited November 21, 2024)
Average EBIT per TEU of selected container carriers between Q1 2019 and Q1 2023, by carrier [Graph], Sea-Intelligence, June 8, 2023. [Online]. Available: https://www.statista.com/statistics/1372935/container-carriers-ebit-per-teu-quarterly/
