Denmark’s largest companies is fighting in its two main business segments on a rough sea (Photo: Reuters).
Stockholm Søren Skou speaks plain text. “The result is not satisfactory,” said the new head of the world’s biggest container shipping company, Maersk. It would have made no sense to gloss over the quarterly figures, which he presented on Friday in Copenhagen in any form. On balance, the Group earned in the second quarter there were only 134 million dollars (120 million euros). A year earlier, net still was 1.1 billion dollars. The Danes have less implemented: are 10.5 billion in the year- ago quarter now recorded only $ 8.8 billion.
The outlook for the full year are not rosy. Skou predicts a “significantly weaker” than the prior year and therefore wants to further cut costs screw. At the stock exchange in Copenhagen was rewarded: The price of the Møller-Maersk shares rose temporarily by more than five percent
Hapag-Lloyd <. span class = "vhb-colon"> container shipping company sinks into the sea of red numbers
Denmark’s largest companies struggling in its two main business segments on a rough sea. Low freight rates and the extreme fall in oil prices have made the company, which is mainly active in logistics and oil business, hard to create. The weak global trade and lower freight rates hit the group at a very sensitive point. Because Møller-Maersk represents about 15 percent of the total global container transportation. The industry publication Alphaliner has calculated that Maersk Line is not only by far the largest container shipping company in the world, but over the years also the highest profit margin of all competitors scored. “Big is beautiful” So was also on the high seas.
But this golden age is over. In October last year the then Møller-Maersk CEO Nils Smedegaard Andersen presented an austerity program for the oil and for the container division. Overall, the company plans to cut more than 4,000 jobs by the end of next year. Even then it became apparent that the group had fallen into rough seas. Because never before had cutbacks in both areas Møller-Maersk simultaneously. Usually, the weaknesses of a division with the strength of the other could be compensated.
Meanwhile Smedegaard Andersen has been replaced. The austerity program is also true under Skou on. The new chief, who took office only this summer, has set itself the task to take the nested group structure under the microscope and draw up possible alternatives. These options should certainly be a splitting of the different divisions include. Even more were investors with the performance of the conglomerate that also in oil production and in the development of new oil fields is active in addition to the container shipping company, not satisfied
They also complain for some time about the lack of transparency. Because today hardly know them, in which they put their money. Besides container shipping company and the oil industry operates Maersk ports a tanker fleet, several service companies for the logistics sector and is about A. P. Møller Holding with 20 percent major shareholder of the largest Danish bank, Danske Bank. A splitting of the individual activities would provide a much better overview. It would also be for Maersk easier to completely dispose of certain non-core business belonging parts of companies.
Skou announced on Friday to submit his report on the future direction of the group before the end of the third quarter. Not only in Denmark is waiting eagerly for the result.
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