Shipping giant Maersk: Strong demand outside the U.S., raises outlook for container market demand

Global shipping giant Maersk's Q2 performance exceeded expectations, with strong demand outside the United States. The company raised its financial outlook for 2025, expecting global container market growth of 2% to 4% this year, a significant increase from previous expectations. Thursday's financial report showed that Maersk's second-quarter revenue reached $13.13 billion, surpassing the market expectation of $12.57 billion. Earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation, and amortization (EBITDA) were $2.3 billion, also higher than the market expectation of $1.99 billion. The company raised its full-year base EBITDA forecast to $8 billion to $9.5 billion, far exceeding the previous guidance range of $6 billion to $9 billion. This adjustment reflects management's confidence in the business outlook for the second half of the year, with analysts' average expectation at $7.94 billion. Market analysis suggests that this positive outlook reflects the diverging trends in global trade patterns: U.S. tariff policies are dragging down imports in North America, while regions such as Europe, Latin America, West Asia, and Africa are showing strong import growth momentum. Maersk noted in its report that despite facing unprecedented geopolitical volatility, the company remains focused on operational improvements, with the ongoing Red Sea crisis expected to last throughout the year, which has somewhat alleviated the industry's oversupply of vessels. Global Demand Divergence: Weak in the U.S., Strong in Other Regions It is noteworthy that Maersk raised its global container market growth forecast to 2% to 4%, up from the previous expectation of -1% to 4%. This adjustment is primarily based on the resilience of demand outside the United States. Maersk explicitly stated in its report, "The contraction in North American imports is offset by strong import growth in Europe, Latin America, West Asia, and Africa." This regional demand divergence supports the company's overall performance. Maersk CEO Vincent Clerc stated in an interview: We see container demand far exceeding expectations, largely driven by the prosperity of China's manufacturing sector and strong global export growth, which offsets the dampening effects of U.S. tariff uncertainties. Maersk expects that due to the drag from U.S. tariff policies, global economic growth will be "moderate" in the second half of the year. The company has already benefited from volume growth in certain markets in the short term. The Red Sea crisis continues to support profits for container shipping companies, as shipowners adopt longer routes around southern Africa, alleviating the industry's oversupply of vessels