Soren Skou CEO of AP Moller-Maersk group states Maerks is focusing on capital expenditure
Free spending days at AP Moller-Maersk group, the world’s biggest shipping company, are over as its CEO Soren Skou looks forward to a challenging markets ahead in world container shipping. “We have as a company a long history of not being disciplined on our capex [capital expenditure], but now we are focusing on capex,” said Mr Skou, reported New York’s FreightWaves.
In recent months the company has maintained a tight rein on capital expenditure over the past year with no large terminal projects or costly new ships ordered and this policy will continue until at least 2020, said the company. The group’s chief holding, the container carrier Maersk Line with its four million TEU capacity, expects trade to grow one to three per cent this year.
Soren Skou cautious about container trade in 2019
“The moderation of container demand growth reflects a broad-based slowdown in all the main economies, following the recovery of 2016 and 2017, as well as negative effects from fast-forwarding of US imports in the fourth quarter 2018 when retailers prepared for a tariff hike,” Maersk said in a statement.
Even though the company had a strong start to the year with revenue up 2.5 per cent and operating profit increasing a third, Mr Skou reaffirmed earlier caution stated about 2019 results. “We are still facing considerable uncertainties from weaker macro numbers as well as the risk from trade tensions” and the implementation of the International Maritime Organisation’s 2020 mandate for reducing sulphur emissions from ships, he said.
