Over the first nine months of the year, revenue at Hamburger Hafen und Logistik AG (HHLA) increased by €906m, with growth in the operating result (EBIT) up just under 11%. The company increased its operating result to €131m in the first three quarters.
Over the first three quarters, the Group expanded its position in the container transport market and increased its hinterland transport volume by over 10%.
Container throughput also increased (+1.8%), tempered though by a decrease of roughly 5% in feeder traffic at the company’s Hamburg terminals, stemming partly from a significant reduction in traffic with Russia. The economic impact of the conflict in Ukraine also affected the rate of growth, the company said.
Far East traffic, however, increased by 8.5%, resulting in container throughput at all the company’s terminals rising by 0.3%
The company attributes the “pleasing” performance in revenue and operating result to, among other things, operational improvements, moves to optimise the cost of coping with peak loads and a noticeable increase in the proportion of higher-margin overseas traffic in the handling mix.
HHLA’s intermodal companies, which provide road- and rail-bound transportation in the European hinterland, generated clear growth over the period, gaining market share in the process. They transported 973,000 teu (+10% year on year), driven by connections with the Czech Republic, Slovakia and Hungary. Transport links with Germany, Austria and Switzerland launched in late 2012 also saw substantial growth.
