APL box volumes drop 11pc but rate per box rises

SINGAPORE`s Neptune Orient Lines (NOL) has announced that its container shipping arm, APL, carried 11 per cent fewer boxes in the four weeks to July 24 year on year, but earned more per box than in many months.
The news cheered Paris-based Alphaliner. "These results provide a small glimmer of hope for liner operators after the dismal past nine months, which have seen freight rates coming down in a free-fall. Rates have not improved despite rising bunker costs since January," commented the consultancy`s weekly newsletter.
"Apparently some effects of recent freight rate increases and peak season cargo volumes are beginning to show. Freight rates for the for the four-week period from 27 June to 24 July showed a marginal 1.3 per cent improvement to US$1,110 per TEU, compared to US$1,095 per TEU in the preceding four weeks in June. During the same period, APL`s liftings improved by 8.8 per cent on a month-to-month basis to 374,800 TEU," said the Paris based consultancy.
NOL said in a statement that during the reporting period, APL handled 187,400 FEU, down from 209,800 FEU a year earlier.
The average revenue from each container decreased 29 per cent year-on-year to US$2,219. However, the revenue per container was, slightly higher than the $2,190 recorded for the preceding four-week period ended June 26, Reuters reported.