SITC International, the holding company of Chinese intra-Asia carrier SITC Container Lines, said that net profit for the first half of 2020 was up 10% year-on-year, to US$119.64 million, as reduced bunker costs mitigated a drop in cargo volumes and freight revenue.
SITC said that its H1 revenue generated by its container shipping and logistics business decreased by approximately 0.2% from approximately US$732 million.
The group’s container shipping and supporting logistics business generated revenue of US$655.7 million, down 2% year-on-year. On the other hand, other container logistics businesses saw revenues rise 18% to US$76.3 million.
Reduced container shipping revenues were due to the decrease in container volumes to 1,152,242TEU, from 1,179,341TEU in H1 2019, as the initial stage of the Covid-19 pandemic disrupted consumption and industrial activities.
Notwithstanding the market uncertainties caused by the Covid-19 pandemic, SITC believes that the intra-Asia trade market will continue to experience healthy growth. As of 30 June 2020, the group operated 70 trade lanes, including nine through joint services and 27 trade lanes through container slot exchange arrangements. These services and land-based integrated logistics business network covered 72 major ports in Asia.
As of 30 June 2020, SITC Container Lines operated 86 vessels with a total capacity of 125,403TEU, comprising 59 owned (81,571TEU) and 27 chartered vessels (43,832TEU).
Container News reported recently that SITC has been expanding its fleet with second-hand purchases as the company is optimistic about the outlook for intra-Asia shipping.
Martina Li
Asia Correspondent
