Mitsui O.S.K. Lines Ltd., the operator of the world’s largest merchant fleet, raised its full- year profit forecast as demand for transporting goods between Asia and the U.S. and Europe rebounded.
Mitsui expects net income of 65 billion yen ($745 million) for the year ending March 31, compared with its earlier forecast of 60 billion yen, the Tokyo-based shipping line said in a statement today. The company kept its forecast for sales at 1.55 trillion yen.
Japanese shipping lines are benefiting from higher rates for transporting goods and the introduction of peak-season surcharges as the global economic rebound helped boost demand. Steel and iron-ore price gains may also help improve Chinese demand for bulk shipping, analysts said.
“The rebound in container rates is helping shipping lines,” said Ryota Himeno, an analyst at Mitsubishi UFJ Morgan Stanley Securities Co. “We’ll probably see prices for bulk shipping also increase later this year.”
Mitsui had profit of 20.8 billion yen in the three months ended June 30, compared with a loss of 13 billion yen a year earlier. Sales rose by a third in the quarter to 397 billion yen from 297 billion yen.
The shipping line said yesterday one of its ships may have been attacked near the Strait of Hormuz, which is a transit point for tankers carrying oil from producers including Saudi Arabia, Kuwait and Qatar.
Adding Surcharges
Mitsui O.S.K. rose 0.5 percent to 608 yen at the 11 a.m. close of morning trading in Tokyo.
Nippon Yusen K.K. last month said it was planning to add an extra $200 per 20-foot container on routes between Asia and North America after demand increased.
Shipments to the U.S. from Asia rose for a fifth month in April, gaining 13.1 percent, according to figures from the Japan Maritime Center.
Chinese steel prices rose 4.7 percent last week, the most in 11 months. Derivatives for fourth-quarter iron-ore prices jumped 23 percent between July 9 and 21, Deutsche Bank AG said. Costs for leasing capesize ships used to carry iron ore will average $30,375 a day in the fourth quarter, from $12,643 now, according to the median in a Bloomberg survey of 18 analysts.
The Baltic index, a measure of commodity-shipping rates, rose for the ninth day yesterday, gaining 1.7 percent to 1,901 in London, following its longest slump in almost 15 years.
Mitsui expects net income of 65 billion yen ($745 million) for the year ending March 31, compared with its earlier forecast of 60 billion yen, the Tokyo-based shipping line said in a statement today. The company kept its forecast for sales at 1.55 trillion yen.
Japanese shipping lines are benefiting from higher rates for transporting goods and the introduction of peak-season surcharges as the global economic rebound helped boost demand. Steel and iron-ore price gains may also help improve Chinese demand for bulk shipping, analysts said.
“The rebound in container rates is helping shipping lines,” said Ryota Himeno, an analyst at Mitsubishi UFJ Morgan Stanley Securities Co. “We’ll probably see prices for bulk shipping also increase later this year.”
Mitsui had profit of 20.8 billion yen in the three months ended June 30, compared with a loss of 13 billion yen a year earlier. Sales rose by a third in the quarter to 397 billion yen from 297 billion yen.
The shipping line said yesterday one of its ships may have been attacked near the Strait of Hormuz, which is a transit point for tankers carrying oil from producers including Saudi Arabia, Kuwait and Qatar.
Adding Surcharges
Mitsui O.S.K. rose 0.5 percent to 608 yen at the 11 a.m. close of morning trading in Tokyo.
Nippon Yusen K.K. last month said it was planning to add an extra $200 per 20-foot container on routes between Asia and North America after demand increased.
Shipments to the U.S. from Asia rose for a fifth month in April, gaining 13.1 percent, according to figures from the Japan Maritime Center.
Chinese steel prices rose 4.7 percent last week, the most in 11 months. Derivatives for fourth-quarter iron-ore prices jumped 23 percent between July 9 and 21, Deutsche Bank AG said. Costs for leasing capesize ships used to carry iron ore will average $30,375 a day in the fourth quarter, from $12,643 now, according to the median in a Bloomberg survey of 18 analysts.
The Baltic index, a measure of commodity-shipping rates, rose for the ninth day yesterday, gaining 1.7 percent to 1,901 in London, following its longest slump in almost 15 years.