Cosco Shipping Holdings has reported steady profit growth in the first half of 2025, despite facing ongoing market volatility driven by geopolitical tensions, shifting tariffs, and increasing operational costs, reports Lloyd’s List.
The company attributes its continued success to strategic investments in digital transformation and low-carbon initiatives, which have helped buffer external challenges.
Cosco Maintains Growth Momentum
In terms of volume, the company saw significant growth across several key regions. Intra-Asia services recorded a 5.2% increase year-on-year, while volumes on routes to Africa and Latin America rose by 11.9%. Services within mainland China also grew by 9.5%, reinforcing Cosco’s strong position in regional trade. This broad-based volume expansion provided a solid foundation for revenue gains, even as certain global trade routes experienced disruptions.
Cosco’s global terminal operations also delivered strong results. The company operates 379 berths across 39 ports worldwide, and terminal revenues rose by 14.8% in the first half of the year, reaching 5.8 billion yuan. The group is currently in discussions to acquire additional port assets, including those from CK Hutchison, signaling an aggressive push to expand its global footprint and capacity.
On the shipping side, Cosco maintained a substantial fleet of 557 vessels, representing over 3.4 million TEU in capacity. The company also has 51 newbuildings on order, which are expected to add another 910,000 TEU to its fleet. This investment reflects its long-term strategy to enhance service offerings and stay competitive as customer expectations and environmental regulations evolve.
Financially, Cosco posted revenues of 1.1 trillion yuan for the first half of 2025, a 7.8% increase compared to the same period last year. Profits rose nearly 4%, reaching 175 billion yuan, indicating that the company is maintaining profitability despite challenging market conditions. The container shipping segment alone brought in 104.8 billion yuan in revenue, a 7.5% year-on-year increase, while total throughput reached 13.3 million TEU—up by 6.6%.
Revenue from shipping routes totaled 96.6 billion yuan, up 6.9%, with the second quarter accounting for 44.9 billion yuan and 6.8 million TEU of handled volume. This consistent performance across quarters suggests that the company’s strategies are yielding reliable results, even amid fluctuating demand and cost pressures.
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Source: Lloyd’s List
