MOL raises income in first half of financial year 2019
In the first half of its financial year 2019 (August till September), the Japanese carrier MOL’s revenues went down to USD 5.32 billion, a drop of 45.5% compared to the preceding Q2/FY 2018. The operating profit in H1/FY 2019 also shrunk to 111.6 million USD, whereas in H1/FY 2018, the company had generated a figure of USD 136.8 million (-19,5%).
Nevertheless, MOL managed to record income gains during the first six months of the FY. While operating profit fell by 2.7% in H1/FY 2019 in comparison to the corresponding period in 2018, net income surged by 19.9%. Japan’s financial year runs from 1 April to 31 March, meaning that Japan’s second quarter in its financial year corresponds to the third quarter in the calendar year.
Commenting on the results, MOL, one of the members of the ONE container shipping line, pointed out that liftings by ONE increased on all routes. Furthermore, freight rates went up, except on the ill-fated Asia-Europe route. The improvements in profit were attributed to cost-cutting programmes and the optimisation of both the customer and cargo portfolio. (fd)