COSCO Shipping Holdings saw its first-half 2026 earnings weaken even as box volumes expanded. Group net profit dropped 34% to CNY 13.4 billion (US$2.0 billion).

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Combined container traffic from COSCO Shipping Lines and OOCL grew 8% to 14.3 million TEU in the January-June period, versus 13.28 million TEU a year earlier. Gains were widespread across key routes. Europe-Far East traffic climbed 12% to 2.19 million TEU, and Transpacific volumes advanced 10% to 2.63 million TEU. Intra-Asia stayed the biggest lane, up 5% to 4.74 million TEU. China domestic volumes rose 10% to 3.15 million TEU, while other routes were nearly flat at 1.58 million TEU.

Consolidated container shipping revenue inched up 2.4% in yuan terms to CNY 107.3 billion (US$15.8 billion). Operating profit, however, slid 28% to CNY 13.4 billion (US$2.0 billion). Operating profit per TEU contracted roughly 30% to US$139 from US$197. The operating margin narrowed to 12.5% from 17.9% in the first half of 2025.

Average revenue per TEU for the two carriers combined rose 2% to US$1,005, though route-level results diverged. Europe-Far East revenue per TEU slipped 4% to US$1,344, and Transpacific fell 6% to US$1,549. Intra-Asia bucked the trend with a 7% gain to US$883, while China domestic edged up 1% to US$316. The biggest jump came from other trades, where revenue per TEU surged 21% to US$1,373.

Stripping out OOCL, COSCO Shipping Lines moved 10.15 million TEU in the half, up 8% from 9.35 million TEU a year prior. That represented about 71% of the group’s consolidated volume. Its average revenue per TEU, though, dipped 2% to US$965.

Source: IndexBox Market Intelligence Platform