Air, Business, Express, Forwarding, Freight News, Logistics

DHL sees solid start to year despite global economic woes

[ May 7, 2024   //   Chris Lewis ]

The DHL Group said it got off to a solid start in 2024, with revenue in the first quarter almost stable at €20.3 billion compared with €20.9bn for Q1 2023. Operating profit (EBIT) of €1.3 billion was, as expected below previous year’s level (Q1 2023: €1.6 billion), but above pre-pandemic level (Q1 2019: €1.2 billion).

Chief executive, Tobias Meyer, said: “We are in an unusually long phase of low momentum in global trade. In this environment, we continue to focus on consistent capacity and cost management. However, we also see further growth potential. The demand for omnishoring and e-commerce solutions remains high and our customers are becoming increasingly aware of sustainable logistics – we can clearly see this in the demand for GoGreen Plus. With our portfolio, we are ideally positioned to benefit from an upturn in global trade. Despite all the challenges, 2024 is a year of opportunities.”

DHL Group said it had managed its capacity and costs in anticipation of the slowdown in global economic momentum in 2022.

A decline in revenue at DHL’s Global Forwarding arm was primarily due to lower freight rates but the division once again recorded volume growth in air and ocean freight compared to the weak prior-year period. Air freight volumes rose by 5.1%, with the improvement primarily attributable to trade routes between Asia and Europe. Ocean freight volumes increased 6.6% compared to the same quarter of the previous year, with the volume of trade routes from Asia increasing in particular.

Tags: DHL