Maersk: 2024 Earnings Forecast Unclear Due to Red Sea Crisis

Maersk announced today, Thursday, that "earnings fell short of expectations in the fourth quarter" and stated that it "expects significantly lower profits than last year in 2024 amid an oversupply of container ships, though there remains uncertainty due to disruptions in the Red Sea." It mentioned that "operating profit before interest, taxes, depreciation, and amortization is expected to range from $1 billion to $6 billion this year, compared to $9.6 billion achieved last year." The company noted in a statement that "there remains considerable uncertainty regarding the duration and level of disruption in the Red Sea, as the indicative range reflects a period of three months to a full year." Operating profit before interest, taxes, depreciation, and amortization fell to $839 million in the fourth quarter, down from $6.54 billion in the same period last year, which was below analysts' expectations of $1.13 billion.