Israel Corp. prepared to inject $150 million into Zim

Zim lost US$61 million in the three months to Sept. 30 from an US$18 million profit in the parallel year as revenue grew 13% to US$1.2 billion
 
Holding company Israel Corp said last week it would be prepared to inject US$150 million if needed into its subsidiary Zim Integrated Shipping Services during 2009.
 
In a statement to the Tel Aviv Stock Exchange Israel Corp said that "The company's willingness in principle is in light of the conditions in the shipping industry and international credit markets and their impact on Zim".
 
Israel Corp owns 99% of Zim, Israel's largest container shipping firm. Zim Integrated Shipping Services is the 17th largest ocean carrier with a fleet capacity of 274,690 TEUs and a 2.1% world market share, according to AXS-Alphaliner, a Paris-based consultant.
 
Zim Integrated Shipping Services posted a loss of US$61 million in the three months to Sept. 30 from an US$18 million profit in the parallel year as revenue grew 13% to US$1.2 billion.
 
Traffic rose to 659,000 TEUs from 611,000 TEUs but this was accompanied by "sharp" declines in freight rates, particularly on the routes between Asia and northern Europe.
 
In the first nine months of the year Zim lost US$131 million against a year-earlier profit of US$32 million as revenues rose to US$3.4 billion from US$2.75 billion. Traffic gained 10.7% to 1.94 million TEUs but average rates per container fell 9.9%.