Hapag-Lloyd targets China trade after CSAV merger
German firm to strengthen exposure to developing markets, including China-Latin America trade, as it seeks a return to profitability
Hapag-Lloyd, now the world's fourth-largest container shipping company, said its recent merger with Chilean company CSAV will help it expand into China trade with Latin America, as it looks to strengthen its exposure to developing markets.
Rolf Habben Jansen, chief executive of the German company that completed the merger with CSAV's container business this month, said: "The merger strengthens our service offer in Latin America and will help us participate more in China's trades with the southern hemisphere.
"We are looking to have more exposure to the growing markets including intra-Asia and Africa, as we have traditionally focused on the mature markets."
Asia, where the company now employs nearly 1,200 people after the merger, accounts for 25 to 30 per cent of its headcount and a similar proportion of revenue. That share will go up in five to 10 years, though he added that the company's intra-Asia shipping business is still small and has yet to come up with a market-specific growth strategy.
The priority now, Jansen said, is to complete the integration by the middle of next year and return to profitability as soon as possible. The company has not been in the black for 31/2 years, recording €428 million (HK$4.1 billion) in net losses during that period.
"We are looking to write some black numbers in 2016," he said, adding that a planned IPO in the German stock market by the end of next year may not take place that soon as next year will be a year of transitions.