Torm posts first quarterly profit in five years

The profit follows a loss of $284.2m in 2014, including $195m of impairments, and comes as the company moves ahead with a restructuring arrangement despite being 6% shy of full lenders' approval.

The low oil price coupled with high refinery margins stimulated the product tanker market, pushing spot rates for Torm's MR tankers up 66% year-on-year to $25,275 per day.

On the dry side, panamax rates were down 63% from Q1 2014 to $6,063 per day, leading the company's bulk segment to a gross loss of $2m. Oversupply of vessels and a significant drop in Chinese coal imports continue to suppress the dry bulk sector.

Torm still had $1.3bn of interest-bearing debt at the end of the quarter, with liquidity of $53m and negative equity of $153m.

The company gave no guidance for 2015 due to its impending restructure. At the end of the quarter, 5% of Torm's remaining tanker days were covered at an average of $25,757 per day, and 40% of bulker days were covered at $8,229.