Bruce Barnard, Special Correspondent | Mar 29, 2012 10:03AM EDT
Zim Integrated Shipping Services swung to a $397 million loss in 2011 from a $54 million profit in 2010 as the Israeli ocean carrier faced tougher competition in a deteriorating container shipping market.
The carrier reported a fourth quarter loss of $96 million, compared with a $151 million profit in the same period in 2010 and a $66 million loss in the third quarter of 2011.
Zim’s parent Israel Corp., which owns 99 percent of its equity, gave the carrier $50 million in cash in February, part of a $100 million aid package it pledged in 2011.
Zim, which got a $450 million Israel Corp.-led capital injection to avoid bankruptcy in 2009, is the world’s 16th-largest carrier with a 2 percent market share.
Contact Bruce Barnard at brucebarnard47@hotmail.com.