OOIL first-half profit falls 24% despite record OOCL container volumes
Attributable profit dropped to $727.95m even as liftings reached 4.132m TEU
Orient Overseas (International) Ltd, the parent of container carrier OOCL, saw first-half attributable profit fall 24% despite record cargo volumes and higher liner revenue.
Profit attributable to equity holders dropped to $727.95m in the six months to 30 June 2026 from $954.23m a year earlier. Group revenue rose 6.1% to $5.173bn from $4.876bn, but EBIT fell to $728m from $985m and EBITDA to $1.255bn from $1.466bn. Operating cash flow was $819m. Operating costs climbed to $4.335bn from $3.907bn, and gross profit declined to $838.3m from $969m.
The volume side of the business set records. OOCL carried 4.132m TEU, up 5.2% from 3.926m TEU, while liner revenue increased 5.5% to $4.675bn and average liner revenue per TEU edged up 0.2%. Liftings were the highest recorded for a first half, and liner revenue the highest outside the pandemic period.
Momentum strengthened in the second quarter, when liner revenue rose 19.8% to $2.537bn, liftings gained 8.8% and average revenue per TEU increased 10.1%. By trade, Asia-Europe liftings grew about 9% and revenue about 6%, despite a roughly 3% decline in revenue per TEU. Trans-Pacific liftings rose about 7% while revenue per TEU fell around 3%.
Costs are where the gap between record volume and lower profit opens. The average bunker price increased 8% to about $582 per tonne from $541 per tonne, and both higher prices and increased fuel oil and diesel consumption from a larger fleet pushed bunker costs up. Most vessels on major long-haul routes were fully loaded when the results were prepared.
"As new vessels continue to be delivered and the peak season approaches its end, freight rates may come under pressure," the company said.
OOIL ordered twelve LNG dual-fuel container ships of about 13,600 TEU each in April for delivery between 2028 and 2030. OOCL WISDOM, the group's first green methanol dual-fuel containership, was delivered in June. The company is incorporated in Bermuda, and its container transport and logistics operations include OOCL and OOCL Logistics. China COSCO SHIPPING Corporation Limited is the group's ultimate parent.
