Maersk Raises Full-Year Profit Outlook on Stronger Container Demand

A.P. Moller-Maersk raised its full-year outlook for container volumes and profit measures after stronger demand emerged, particularly in Asia. The company now projects global container volumes to grow about 4 percent this year, compared with its prior range of 2 percent to 4 percent.

It also increased guidance for underlying EBITDA to a range of $8 billion to $10 billion, up from an earlier forecast of $4.5 billion to $7 billion. Underlying EBIT guidance moved to a profit of $2 billion to $4 billion from a prior loss range of $1.5 billion to $1 billion.

The revised forecasts exceed analyst estimates compiled by Bloomberg. Free cash flow guidance was also lifted, though specific new ranges were not disclosed in the announcement. Maersk attributed the improvement to higher spot freight rates, resilient Asian export volumes, and reduced effective capacity caused by ongoing route disruptions.

Research noted that Maersk is benefiting from the recent surge in spot rates and questioned how long the current environment will last. Deutsche Bank said it revised 2026 forecasts upward but made limited changes to estimates beyond that year. Bernstein observed that the increase in spot rates this year reflects both higher fuel surcharges earlier and continued demand strength even as fuel prices declined.

The firm said it remains unclear how much of the demand represents a pull-forward ahead of potential new costs versus genuine growth. Maersk last week stated that conditions have been strong throughout the first half of the year despite disruptions and that the current environment appears likely to continue.