COPENHAGEN: AP Moller-Maersk is aiming to become a one-stop shop for container freight akin to FedEx or UPS, as the Danish conglomerate seeks growth in transport and logistics to offset the impact of spinning off its energy businesses. Soren Skou, Maersk’s chief executive, told the Financial Times on Tuesday that the group would look at selling far more than just its core container shipping product.
There would be a whole array of services for Maersk’s customers, including help clearing customs, the transportation of goods by trucks to ports, and cargo insurance, he added.
“It means that we have to be able to provide more end-to-end services for our customers, effectively making it simpler for them to ship from one side of the world to the other, giving them control and transparency,” Mr Skou said.
The Danish group is in the middle of one of the biggest corporate break-ups in recent years as it separates out its energy businesses, which provided about a quarter of revenue and 40 per cent of profit last year, and focuses instead on Maersk Line, the world’s biggest container shopping line.
It is aiming to boost its return on invested capital by two percentage points, from an average of about 7 per cent in the past five years, by seeking greater cost savings between Maersk Line and a range of smaller businesses including the group’s APM Terminals unit that runs ports and Damco, a supply chain specialist.
An advantage of imitating FedEx or UPS would be to bring more price stability into container shipping, which is renowned for wild swings in freight rates.
