PIL posts US$277.6 million earnings for FY2023, expects to stay profitable in FY2024

SINGAPORE : Container carrier Pacific International Lines (PIL) posted US$277.6 million in net profit for FY2023 – about 10 per cent of its FY2022 earnings of US$3 billion – as freight rates tumbled.

PIL’s revenue for FY2023 to December was 53 per cent lower at US$2.9 billion, compared with US$6.1 billion a year earlier.

The carrier’s results are in line with peers at a time when container shipping rates began their downward trajectory, after pandemic-induced supply chain disruptions and e-commerce boom eased.

Average cargo rates on a per 20-foot-equivalent-unit (a unit of measurement used to determine cargo capacity for containerships) basis were 58 per cent lower in 2023 than 2022 for PIL.

The company’s cargo rates have not been as impacted as those in the United States and Europe trade lanes because its key markets are Africa, South America and Intra-Asia, Mr. Lars Kastrup, Chief Executive of the Temasek-backed liner, said.