NOL is one of several major carriers to report improved cargo volumes and profits in the past quarter.
Neptune Orient Lines Ltd., owner of Asia’s largest container line by fleet size, posted its first profit in seven quarters after moving more boxes at higher rates amid a recovery in the global economy.
Second-quarter net income was $99.7 million, compared with a $146.2 million loss a year earlier, the company said in a statement today. Neptune Orient said it expects “significant improvement” in profit for the third quarter.
Neptune Orient last month ordered as many as 12 container ships worth about $1.2 billion and plans to increase capacity by 7 percent this year. Sales at APL rose 54 percent to $1.9 billion in the quarter. The unit accounts for about 90 percent of Neptune Orient’s total revenue of $2.12 billion.