March 3 - The Kuehne + Nagel Group says that it benefitted from the recovery of world trade in its last financial year - 2010.

The Swiss-based company boosted its 2010 turnover by 16.4 percent from CHF17,406 million in 2009 to CHF20,261 million last year.

The corporation's operational result (ebitda) rose by 13.4 percent to CHF1,004 million, whilst EBIT grew by 28.8 percent from CHF 594 million to CHF 765 million. Net earnings jumped from CHF467 million in 2009 to CHF601 million, an increase of 28.7 percent.

"In 2010, Kuehne + Nagel met its targets and recorded better results than in the pre-crisis period due to the implementation of its growth strategy," said the company.

Sea freight recovered the momentum of the pre-crisis period. "With an increase in container volume of almost 16 percent, the company outperformed the market between 10 and 12 percent and gained market share in almost all trade lanes," it added.

Increased productivity and cost cutting resulted in a 17.3 percent rise in operational earnings.

Aircargo increased too, particularly in Asia-Pacific and the K+N Group achieved new record levels - almost a million tonnes - a 25 percent increase compared to the previous year.

Karl Gernandt, executive vice chairman of the Board of Directors, said: "The company's strategic parameters are set to achieve growth above market average while at the same time increasing efficiency and productivity. This approach proved successful in 2010. Due to our industry-specific product portfolio we gained market share in all our business units and strengthened our global competitive position. Efficiency increase, documented by the improved ratio between gross profit and EBIT, indicates the internal strengths of the Group and provides a resilient basis for further development in the years to come."

In regards to the economic environment in the first half of 2010, the company says that there is still no certainty of a sustained global economic recovery due to the lasting recession in the U.S.A, the credit risks in some southern European countries and the volatility in international finance markets. Emerging countries, primarily China, significantly contributed to the growth of global trade, which closely correlates with the international logistics business. While the economy in Asia picked up significantly, a diverging gross domestic product development was seen in the other regions.

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