Cosco Shipping Holdings grows profit in volatile market

COSCO Shipping Holdings, the containership and port arm of China’s state conglomerate Cosco, saw continued profit growth in the first half of 2025 despite increasingly challenging conditions in the market.

Amid heightened volatility in global container shipping from tariff swings and geopolitical tensions, CSH said in a stock exchange filing that it was steering growth by investing in digital intelligence and green, low-carbon development.

While the US continues to impose new tariff measures and extra port charges on Chinese operators, CSH sees opportunities elsewhere. Its intra-Asia services, other international routes including Africa and Latin America, and mainland China routes recorded year-on-year volume growth of 5.2%, 11.9% and 9.5%, respectively.

Lower tariff regions in Southeast Asia and South America may benefit from a cost edge, creating opportunities for intra-Asia and China–Latin America routes, according to Liu Xiaoning of HuaYuanSecurities.

Beyond its carrier business, CSH operates a global terminal business with 379 berths across 39 ports, which generated revenue of Yuan5.8bn in the first half, up 14.8% year on year. The company is rumoured to join talks to acquire CK Hutchison’s ports assets.

As of June 2025, it operates a self-owned container fleet of 557 vessels with a total capacity over 3.4m teu. The company holds an orderbook of 51 newbuildings, adding more than 910,000 teu to its fleet.

Looking ahead, CSH said the market outlook remains uncertain amid ongoing US tariff adjustments and geopolitical flashpoints that continue to disrupt trade.

The Shanghai and Hong Kong-listed giant posted revenues of Yuan1.1trn ($150bn) for the first half of 2025, up 7.8% year on year, while profits rose nearly 4% to Yuan175bn.

Container shipping, the group’s core business, posted revenue of Yuan104.8bn for the first half, up 7.5% year on year, handling 13.3m teu, a 6.6% increase. Its route revenue amounted to Yuan96.6bn, an increase of 6.9% from a year earlier.

In the second quarter alone, CSH handled 6.8m teu, with revenue of Yuan44.9bn.