Courage Marine widens Q1 loss to $1m, expects weak year ahead
Dry bulk player Courage Marine saw its first quarter loss widen to $1.0m from $622,000 previously as revenue rose just 6% to $5.3m while costs rose 11% to $5.4m.
Courage blamed the higher losses on higher crew fees and depreciation expenses arising from the operation of more vessels as it boosted its fleet. Although this resulted in slightly higher revenue, the continued weakness of rates in the first quarter countered this.
The group also saw other income fall 84% to $29,000 in the first quarter as a one-off insurance claim received in the previous corresponding quarter helped to boost income.
Looking ahead, Courage said: "The dry bulk market remains weak and the BDI, which has a close correlation to freight rates, is low at the 1,000 level. Low demand for commodities in the Greater China Region, in particular during the Chinese New Year period, and the oversupply of vessels led to more pressure on the freight rates of the dry bulk market. The group remains cautious on the outlook for 2014."
It added that it expects financial performance for the year to be adversely affected by the current challenging economic conditions and uncertain outlook.
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