Kuehne & Nagel Full-year Profit Rises 20 Percent on Higher Volumes

Swiss logistics giant Kuehne & Nagel saw its full-year profit surge 20 percent as revenues rose slightly, prompting it to increase its dividend by 10 percent and award a special dividend to its shareholders.

Profit for the year rose to 607 million Swiss francs ($690.2 million), up from 492 million francs a year earlier, according to RTT News. Net invoiced revenue jumped 0.8 percent to 20.9 billion francs; as air cargo volumes rose 3.8 percent, while sea-freight volumes increased 3 percent. However, currency fluctuations hurt its revenue by 298 million francs.

Earnings before interest and taxes increased 20 percent in 2013 to 761 million francs ($865 million), which slightly lagged the median estimate of 763.8 million francs in a Bloomberg survey of analysts.

“In 2013, we fully concentrated on profitable growth,” Chief Executive Officer Detlef Trefzger said in the statement. “Through organizational adjustments, streamlined cost structures and a clear focus on margin improvements we achieved the goals we had set ourselves.”

Schindellegi, Switzerland-based Kuehne will award its shareholders a full-year dividend of 3.85 Swiss francs a share, up from 3.50 francs in 2012. It has also announced a special dividend of 2 francs a share.

The company expects its sea cargo volumes to outperform the market by 50 percent in 2014. It forecasts the global sea-freight market to rise between 2 percent to 4 percent this year, while the air cargo market is expected to grow 1 percent to 3 percent.

The weak global economy, which has seen growth in emerging markets such as India and China slow down, has negatively impacted on shipping firms. This recently prompted Kuehne & Nagel contract logistics division to shut down 40 unprofitable locations.