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Maersk launches rail offering from Barcelona, Spain to Southern France

Barcelona, Spain – AP Moeller-Maersk AS (OTC: AMKBY) is launching a new rail product from the Port of Barcelona to Southern France especially designed to cut transit times of ocean cargo destined to the areas Toulouse, Bordeaux and Lyon by using Barcelona as an alternative gateway. Starting early November there will be three weekly direct block trains between Barcelona and Toulouse as well as one weekly connection between Barcelona and Lyon. Via Toulouse the solution also connects cargo to Bordeaux seamlessly by using a partner network. Furthermore, it is intended to extend the connectivity on the Spanish side by rail to the areas of Tarragona and Zaragoza.

This new offering can shorten transit times for import and export cargo in the areas Toulouse, Bordeaux and Lyon by up to 12 days (7 days on average) compared to traditional routings via French or North European ports. Thanks to shorter transport distances and the utilisation of electrified trains it can also be a more environmentally friendly routing. The block trains can also be booked for intra-continental cargo between Spain and France.

Maersk is operating this new end to end service via its own company APM Spain Railways and cooperates for the trains with the partners Captrain and Naviland.

Thanks to brand new interoperable locomotives, the block trains neither have to stop to change the locomotive or replace wheel-sets at the Spanish-French border for seamless operations and best-in-class reliability.

 

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A.P. Moller – Maersk reports robust Q2 financial results in difficult market

Copenhagen, Denmark – A.P. Moller – Maersk (OTC: AMKBY) reports a second quarter of 2023 ahead of expectations, while the ongoing market normalisation continued through the quarter leading to lower volumes and lower rates. Revenue stood at USD 13.0bn compared to USD 21.7bn in Q2 2022 while profitability was strong at 12.4% although significantly lower compared to the extraordinarily strong Q2 2022. Reflecting the strong first half performance, Maersk raises its financial outlook and now expects underlying EBITDA of USD 9.5 – 11.0bn (previously USD 8.0 – 11.0bn), underlying EBIT of USD 3.5 – 5.0bn (previously USD 2.0 – 5.0bn) despite a weakened second half market outlook.

Ocean revenue decreased to USD 8.7bn from USD 17.4bn driven by a decrease in freight rates and loaded volumes. While the volume and rate environment stabilized at a lower level during Q2, Ocean continued to be impacted by lower demand, driven by a significant inventory correction in particular in North America and Europe. A strong cost management allowed to partially offset the top line impact on financial performance in Ocean.

Revenue in Logistics & Services was USD 3.4bn compared to USD 3.5bn. The segment was also impacted by lower volumes due to the continued destocking and weaker consumer demand, as well as low rates. As in Ocean, market demand is expected to continue to be subdued as long as the inventory correction is ongoing.

Revenue in Terminals decreased to USD 950m from USD 1.1bn and was influenced by the normalisation of storage revenue and lower volumes amid lower consumer demand and less congestion in North America. Strong cost control contributed to a continued solid financial performance.

Avianca Brazil Gives Up 18 Planes, Cancels 1,045 Flights

RIO DE JANEIRO (AP) — Avianca Brasil canceled more than 1,045 domestic flights this week because it has to return 18 aircraft to leasing agencies.

Brazil’s National Aviation Agency said the planes needed to be returned Monday to avoid affecting Holy Week holiday passengers. Customers can either get refunds for canceled flights or rebook through partner airlines.

Avianca Brasil declined to say how many planes it has left. But the G1 news portal reports that the airline has just seven planes still in its fleet.

On April 1, the airline canceled several international routes from Sao Paulo to New York, Miami and Santiago, Chile.

Avianca Brasil filed for bankruptcy in December after failing to pay leases on its aircraft. The airline, formerly known as Ocean Air, has licensed the name Avianca since 2010 from Colombian carrier Avianca Holdings SA. They are separate companies with the same owners: brothers German and Jose Efromovich. The latter is being investigated for allegedly failing to pay airport fees in Salvador airport in northeastern Brazil.

A company representative from Avianca’s headquarters in Colombia stressed that the Brazilian company is independent from Avianca Holdings group, both operationally and financially. The company said in a statement that flights operated by Avianca Holdings SA from hubs in Bogota and Lima, Peru, to destinations in Brazil will not be affected by the Avianca Brasil cancellations.

Airbus A320 Neo of Avianca at GRU Airport – Guarulhos International Airport, Sao Paulo, Brazil – 2017