A.P. Moller-Maersk, one of the world's largest container shippers, has warned of a steeper decline in global demand for shipping containers by sea this year, with container volumes expected to fall by as much as 4%. The company attributes this decline to muted economic growth and customers reducing inventories. CEO Vincent Clerc does not anticipate a rebound in trade activity this year and predicts that the drawdown of inventories will take longer in the U.S. than in other regions. Maersk's second-quarter earnings fell to $2.91 billion from $10.3 billion a year earlier, but beat analysts' expectations. The company has also narrowed its profit forecast for the year.
FMC Corporation, a global agricultural sciences company, has updated its expectations for the second quarter and full-year 2023 outlook. The company experienced significant reductions in channel inventory by customers in North America, Latin America, and EMEA, which impacted volumes in the quarter. However, on-the-ground consumption by growers remains robust. FMC has initiated cost mitigation actions and expects improved input costs in the second half of the year. The revised guidance for the second quarter includes revenue between $1.00 billion and $1.03 billion, and adjusted EBITDA in the range of $185 million to $190 million. The full-year revenue outlook is now expected to be $5.20 billion to $5.40 billion, with adjusted EBITDA projected to be $1.30 billion to $1.40 billion.
