Hapag-Lloyd’s group profits fall 155 percent in Q1 2026

Hapag-Lloyd concluded the first quarter of 2026, reporting a Group EBITDA of $494 million, down 55 percent compared to Q1 2025. In the same period, the Group EBIT declined to -$157 million, down 132 percent, while the Group profit declined by 155 percent to -$256 million. 

Compared with the same quarter of the previous year, earnings were impacted by lower freight rates and operational disruptions caused by severe weather and the Strait of Hormuz blockage.

“The first quarter of 2026 was unsatisfactory for us, with weather-related supply chain disruptions and pressure on freight rates leading to significantly lower results,” said Rolf Habben Jansen, CEO of Hapag-Lloyd AG. 

The executive said the company is focused on its Strategy 2030 and the completion of Hapag-Lloyd’s merger with ZIM, while maintaining its rigorous cost management.

Despite the disappointing results, the shipper remains hopeful and expects Group EBITDA to sit between $1.1 and $3.1 billion, while Group EBIT is expected to be in the range of -$1.5 and $0.5 billion. 

However, the company was adamant that this outlook remains subject to considerable uncertainty due to the highly volatile development of freight rates and the conflict in the Middle East.

Terminal and Infrastructure, Hapag-Lloyd’s only growing segment 

According to the shipper’s financial results, in the Liner Shipping segment, revenues decreased to $4.8 billion, primarily due to the lower average freight rate of $1,330/TEU, down from $1,471/TEU in Q1 2025. Despite bad weather conditions in Europe and North America, which resulted in ongoing disruptions of terminal operations and supply chains, transport volume was 3.2 million TEU, nearly on par with the prior-year quarter. 

Additionally, the blockage of the Strait of Hormuz led to disrupted volume flows. EBITDA decreased to $447 million, while EBIT went down to -$174 million.

In the Terminal & Infrastructure segment, revenues increased to $168 million due to the first-time full consolidation of J M Baxi's container business, as well as strong volume growth in Latin America and India. EBITDA rose to $47 million, while EBIT amounted to $18 million.

*All images courtesy of Hapag-Lloyd. 

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