Because of the consequences of the corona pandemic for supply chains, 2022 was the best year in Hapag-Lloyd’s history. The situation has now normalized, with consequences for profits.
After the slump in profits in 2023, the Hamburg container shipping company Hapag-Lloyd is also expecting declining results in 2024. “We have made a satisfactory start to the current financial year, but the economic and political environment remains volatile and challenging – especially with a view to the current situation around the Red Sea,” it said when presenting the annual report for the previous year.
“We therefore expect an overall decline in earnings for 2024.” The board therefore expects that earnings before taxes and interest (EBIT) will range from minus 1 to plus 1 billion euros. For comparison: EBIT in 2023 was 2.5 billion euros, after 17.5 billion euros in the record year 2022.
Meanwhile, the supervisory board of Hapag-Llloyd AG prematurely extended the contract of CEO Rolf Habben Jansen. Instead of running until 2027, the contract now runs until the end of March 2029. “Rolf Habben Jansen has been doing excellent work for Hapag-Lloyd for almost a decade,” said the chairman of the supervisory board, Habben Jansen’s predecessor Michael Behrendt.
“He continuously developed the company strategically, significantly internationalized it and kept it firmly on a growth path despite occasional rough seas.”
Source: Stern
