DP World sees positive outlook for shipping sector

DP World on Tuesday posted strong volume growth of 11.9 per cent in first nine months of the year and sees positive outlook for shipping freight sector following an expected recovery in trade.

The Dubai-based port giant, which operates over 90 terminals across six continents, handled 58.4 million twenty-foot equivalent units (TEUs) across its global portfolio of container terminals during the January-September period this year. On a July-September 2021 quarter basis, it handled 19.8 million TEUs, reflecting an increase of 8.1 per cent year-on-year basis and 7.9 per cent on a like-for-like basis.

“We are delighted to report another strong quarter for DP World with throughput growth of 8.1 per cent, which is once again ahead of industry growth of 6.4 per cent. This strong performance illustrates the resilience of the global container industry, and DP World’s continued ability to outperform the market,” Sultan Ahmed bin Sulayem, group chairman and chief executive officer of DP World, said in a statement to Khaleej Times.

In July-September 2021 quarter, the gross volume growth was mainly driven by Asia Pacific, India, Middle East & Africa and Australia with a strong performance from Qingdao (China), Mumbai (India) and Sokhna (Egypt). Jebel Ali (UAE) handled 3.4 million TEUs during this period, up 0.6 per cent year-on-year basis.

“Encouragingly, all our regions continue to deliver volume growth with India being a key driver, and we continue to make solid progress on our strategy to deliver supply chain solutions to beneficial cargo owners,” Bin Sulayem said.

At a consolidated level, DP World terminals handled 11.4 million TEUs during the third quarter of 2021, increasing 7.6 per cent on a reported basis and 7.2 per cent year-on-year on a like-for-like basis.

Shipping freight outlook

Dubai ports giant DP World said on Tuesday it expected growth in shipping freight container volumes to moderate in the next quarter after volumes handled rose in the third quarter.

Global supply chain disruptions due to pandemic-driven lockdowns and an unexpectedly rapid recovery in trade have led to a shortage of shipping containers, congestion in ports and sky-rocketing freight rates.

“The near-term outlook remains positive, but we do expect growth rates to moderate in the final quarter,” Bin Sulayem said in a statement, citing Covid-19, supply chain constraints and geopolitical uncertainty.

“Overall, we are pleased with the year-to-date performance and remain focused on growing profitability while managing growth capex. The strong nine-month volumes leave us well placed to deliver an improved set of full year results and we remain focused on delivering our 2022 targets,” Bin Sulayem concluded.

— muzaffarrizvi@khaleejtimes.com