By Justina Lee
Shares of Samudera Shipping Line Ltd. rose in early Thursday trade, after the company reported a significant rise in first-half net profit and on expectations that freight rates will remain elevated.
The shipping company’s shares rose by as much as 17% to 1.19 Singapore dollars (US$0.86), bringing year-to-date gains to almost 128%. It was last at S$1.13.
Samudera said late Wednesday that its net profit for the first-half rose to US$171.7 million from US$36.7 million a year earlier. Revenue rose to US$476.2 million from US$209.1 million a year earlier.
The company expects to gain from higher freight rates over the medium term. It said that “freight rates are expected to remain higher than prepandemic levels due to the lag in container vessel supply to meet demand.”
Samudera also said that it is growing its market presence in the tanker sector and will be taking delivery of another chemical tanker in the fourth quarter.
Write to Justina Lee at [email protected]
