Hong Kong-based container ship operator Orient Overseas (International) Ltd said on Thursday revenues from its shipping business in the third quarter rose 28 percent, thanks to booming international trade.
OOIL, owned by the family of Hong Kong's Chief Executive Tung Chee-hwa, said revenues from its wholly-owned Orient Overseas Container Line (OOCL) rose to US$968.24 million in the three months ended Sept. 30 from US$756.13 million the previous year.
It lifted a total of 847,555 20-foot equivalent units (TEUs) of goods, up 21.3 percent, and the overall average revenue per TEU increased by 5.6 percent, the company said in a statement.
"These numbers are ahead of our forecasts. We are looking to review upward (our estimates)," said Peter Williamson, an analyst at Macquarie Securities.
Macquarie has an "outperform" rating for OOIL with an earnings forecast of US$536 million for year to December 2004.
OOIL is also involved in property and other investments but OOCL accounted for more than 85 percent of the group's total revenue of US$1.89 billion for the first half of 2004 and most of its first half net profit of US$268.45 million.
The company said OOCL's total revenues for the first three quarters rose 31.4 percent year on year to US$1.98 billion.