Hapag-Lloyd AG confirmed its earlier expectations of normalisation in earnings after record-breaking industry growth in the past years.

Rolf Habben Jansen, CEO of Hapag-Lloyd AG, also noted the "cooling of the economy" which he said would lead to a significant decline in earnings.

The outlook came as the ocean carrier put to the vote several items on its agenda at its recent  Annual General Meeting — including the appropriation of the net profit and thereby the payment of a dividend of EUR 63 per share to stockholders.

"We look back on an exceptionally strong 2022. We enhanced our service quality, expanded our involvement in the terminal sector, invested in the efficiency of our fleet, and achieved a record result. We are therefore very pleased that our shareholders will benefit from a dividend again," Habben Jansen said.

"What's more, we have got the current financial year off to a good start. However, the cooling of the economy will lead to a significant decline in earnings, which is why we will focus on keeping a firm eye on our costs and continuing to act flexibly in the market. In addition, we will be setting the strategic course that we will pursue until 2030," he added.

Hapag-Lloyd also confirmed its earlier forecasts for 2023.

"As stated in the forecast for the current 2023 financial year published on March 2, Hapag-Lloyd expects earnings to gradually normalise," it said.

The ocean carrier added that EBITDA is expected to be in the range of US$4.3 billion to US$6.5 billion and EBIT to be in the range of US$2.1 billion to US$4.3 billion.

"However, this forecast remains subject to considerable uncertainty given the ongoing war in Ukraine and other geopolitical conflicts as well as the impacts of high inflation," Hapag-Lloyd added.