Trade volatility hits Hapag-Lloyd profits

Liner shipping revenue increased to $15.7 billion from $14.9 billion y/y on a 9% improvement in transport volumes to 10.2 million twenty foot equivalent units (TEUs) from 9.3 million TEUs, mainly on growth in east-west trades. Hapag-Lloyd and Maersk (MAERSK-B.CO) inaugurated the Gemini alliance of joint services in 2025. The partnership helped grow the former’s Asia volume by 19.2%. But the world’s fifth-largest container carrier said liner EBITDA and EBIT margins dropped to 15.5% and 4%. Maersk by comparison reported margins of 19.5% and 6.2% in the recent quarter. Network transition and start-up costs for Gemini, and congestion related costs…