Maersk third quarter profit rises, maintains annual outlook

 Danish oil and shipping group A.P. Moeller-Maersk posted a rise in third quarter net profit on Tuesday, and maintained its annual guidance for the full-year 2014.
The group made net profit of 1.5 billion U.S. dollars for the third quarter 2014, up 25 percent from 1.2 billion dollars for the same period last year, the company said in a financial statement.
Revenue stood at 12.17 billion dollars in July to September 2014, up 0.7 percent from 12.08 billion dollars year-on-year.
Maersk said the result for the third quarter was positively impacted by divesting activities in the terminals and drilling businesses.
"We are very satisfied with the result for the third quarter of 2014 ... We are well positioned to take advantage of opportunities materializing in a volatile macroeconomic environment," the group CEO Nils S. Andersen said in the statement.
For the full year, Maersk Group maintained its outlook for net profit to be at around 4.5 billion dollars, when excluding discontinued operations, impairment losses and divestment gains.
Maersk Line, the group's container-shipping arm, made 685 million dollars profit in the third quarter 2014, up from 554 million dollars for the same period last year, owing to lower costs and an increase in the average freight rate.
Maersk Group's oil production arm saw profits up from 189 million dollars to 222 million dollars in the third quarter 2014, thanks to a 4 percent increase in its share of production as well as lower exploration costs partly offset by lower average oil price.
The group's terminals and drilling businesses also reported profit of 345 million dollars and 192 millions dollars respectively in the third quarter.