March 8 - Gebrüder Weiss has reported total revenues of EUR1.36 billion (USD1.435 billion) for its 2016 financial year, up 6.4 percent in comparison to EUR1.278 billion (USD1.348 billion) achieved in 2015.
The company's land transport and logistics business areas saw increased revenue of five percent to EUR900.7 million (USD950.5 million) (2015: EUR857.7 million (USD905.1 million)), whilst the company's air and sea business area recorded a revenue of EUR285.6 million (USD301.4 million) - a decrease of 2.9 percent (2015: EUR293.9 million (USD310.2 million)).
In 2017, Gebrüder Weiss says it is planning to continue its international growth strategy, in particular in Asia and North America, and to open new locations.
Meanwhile, Deutsche Post DHL Group has reported record earnings for its 2016 financial year, with the Group's operating profit climbing 45 percent to EUR3.5 billion (USD3.69 billion), and its fourth-quarter EBIT of EUR1.111 billion (USD1.172 billion) representing operationally the best quarterly result in company's history.
Group revenues fell by 3.2 percent year-on-year in 2016 to EUR57.3 billion (USD60.47 billion).
The group's Global Forwarding, Freight division made steady improvements in operating performance in 2016. Whilst reported revenue declined by 7.7 percent to EUR13.7 billion (USD14.46 billion), EBIT improved from a loss of EUR181 million (USD191.03 million) in the previous year to a profit of EUR287 million (USD303 million) in 2016. The increase was aided by the absence of negative one-off effects recognised in 2015 in connection with the division's IT renewal.
Royal Boskalis Westminster (Boskalis) has reported an operating net result for 2016 in line with expectations and achieved an operating net profit of EUR276 million (USD291.3 million) in 2016, which turned into a a net loss of EUR564 million (USD595.4 million) after including non-cash impairment charges of EUR840 million (USD886.65 million) after tax.
Revenue declined by 20 percent to EUR2.60 billion (USD2.74 billion) (2015: EUR3.24 billion (USD3.42 billion)), which became a 26 percent decline when adjusted for consolidation, deconsolidation and currency effects.
In light of the strongly deteriorated conditions in the offshore market and the resulting outlook, Boskalis recently announced non-cash impairment charges of EUR840 million (USD886.8 million) after tax, which relate almost entirely to the service-related part of Boskalis' offshore oil and gas activities and relate to the impairment of both vessels and goodwill.
Peter Berdowski, CEO of Boskalis, said: "After the best two years in Boskalis' history, we found ourselves over the course of 2016 increasingly faced with the reality of the current market conditions, particularly in the offshore market. In that sense 2016 was a year of extreme transition for us, from economic high tide to low tide. The analysis carried out for our new business plan point out that a rapid recovery in the offshore market is not expected. And so where necessary we are adapting the organisation to this new reality with further improvements in efficiency and effectiveness."
Boskalis says the market picture for the year ahead will be characterised by continued lower volumes of work and pressure on both utilisation levels and margins. In its Offshore Energy division, following the conclusion of a number of long-term contracts from previous years and the completion of several large offshore wind farm projects revenue will decline and be more dependent on the spot market, where margins remain under continued pressure.
