Bruce Barnard | Jul 19, 2011 11:32AM EDT
Fesco boosted container traffic 46 percent in the first half of the year compared to the same period a year ago, as Russia’s largest ocean carrier benefited from the nation’s economic recovery.
Traffic rose to 214,000 twenty-foot equivalent units from 146,000 TEUs in the first six months of 2010. Fesco’s rail unit increased shipments by 24 percent to 116,000 TEUs, while the forwarding and intermodal service handling jumped to 91,000 TEUs from 54,000 TEUs.
The Vladivostok ocean terminal in Russia’s Far East posted modest growth to 140,000 TEUs from 134,000 TEUs a year ago.
“The impressive growth of container business volumes is a clear sign of steady recovery of the Russian economy and domestic consumption levels,” said Sergey Generalov, Fesco President and CEO.
Fesco swung to $456 million net profit in 2010, from a year-earlier net loss of $233 million, largely due to the gain on the sale of a stake in National Container Co.
The company’s revenue increased $190 million to $800 million within the same period, primarily because of higher cargo volume and improved freight rates in its ocean shipping, logistics and domestic rail freight businesses.
-- Contact Bruce Barnard at brucebarnard47@hotmail.com.
