AP Moller- Maersk posts $1.6bn nine-month loss in 2017

Danish conglomerate A.P. Moller – Maersk posted a nine-month loss USD 1.6 billion, sinking into the red from last year’s profit of USD 780 million.

The group owns the container terminal Apapa, now called AP Moller terminal, considered the biggest in the country.

The group’s loss includes the impact from discontinued operations and was primarily related to post-tax impairments of net USD 2.8 billion in Maersk Drilling, APM Terminals and Maersk Tankers countered by an increase in Maersk Line profit of USD 723 million.

Moller Maersk’s underlying profit for the period came at USD 270 million, against a loss of USD 245 million, mainly driven by an increase in Maersk Line of USD 687 million.

In the third quarter, the net loss including discontinued operations of USD 1.5 billion was negatively impacted by an accounting impairment of USD 1.75 billion in Maersk Drilling and impairments of USD 374 million in APM Terminals. The result from continuing operations was a loss of USD 120 million, widening further from last year’s loss of USD 30 million, with a decrease in APM Terminals of USD 398 million countered by an increase in Maersk Line of USD 336 million.

In Q3, the underlying profit was USD 248 million, with an improvement of USD 290 million in Transport & Logistics and a decline of USD 15 million in Energy.

“I am pleased with the agreements reached in Q3 for Total S.A. to acquire Maersk Olie og Gas A/S and A.P. Moller Holding A/S to acquire Maersk Tankers A/S, which indicates a solid progress in the separation of the Energy businesses. Whilst solutions for Maersk Drilling and Maersk Supply Service remain to be defined before the end of 2018, the future Maersk will leverage even further its position of strength within Transport & Logistics.

The revenue in Transport & Logistics increased with 14% and was mainly driven by higher revenue in Maersk Line,” Soren Skou, CEO of A.P. Moller – Maersk A/S said.

Furthermore, Maersk Group announced that the Salling Companies will acquire the remaining 19% shares in the Dansk Supermarked Group, cashing in over USD 860 million from the sale.

The group now expects a positive underlying profit for 2017 against a loss of USD 546 million. As informed, the group’s Transport & Logistics arm now expects an underlying profit of around USD 1 billion and an improvement in Maersk Line of around USD 1 billion compared to 2016.