Hapag-Lloyd Dodges Red Ink in Q4

Why It Matters

The results highlight Hapag‑Lloyd’s resilience amid a rate‑driven market downturn and signal that alliance‑based cost efficiencies could reshape profitability dynamics in container shipping.

Key Takeaways

• Hapag‑Lloyd Q4 EBIT $200 m, 75% YoY decline
• Full‑year EBIT $1.1 bn, down from $2.8 bn
• TEU volumes rose 200k Q4, 1 m annual increase
• Average spot rates fell $250/teu Q4, $116 yearly
• Gemini Network savings expected to boost 2026 earnings

Pulse Analysis

The container‑shipping sector entered 2026 on a fragile footing, with global spot rates retreating sharply after a pandemic‑driven surge. Hapag‑Lloyd’s ability to stay in the black, albeit with a steep EBIT contraction, underscores the importance of operational scale and diversified revenue streams. While average freight rates slipped to $1,310 per TEU in Q4, the carrier’s modest volume growth—up 200,000 TEU—helped cushion the revenue hit, illustrating that volume elasticity can partially offset price weakness.

Strategic alliances are becoming a decisive factor in the industry’s profit equation. Hapag‑Lloyd’s partnership with Maersk under the Gemini Network promises cost reductions through shared services, optimized routing, and joint capacity management. Although the alliance introduced short‑term expenses, such as rerouting ships around the Cape of Good Hope, management projects that the accrued savings will materialise throughout 2026, potentially narrowing the performance gap with larger rivals. Competitors like Maersk, despite higher full‑year earnings, faced a Q4 loss, highlighting how alliance‑driven efficiencies can deliver steadier earnings amid volatile market conditions.

Looking ahead, the broader market outlook hinges on macro‑economic trends, including global trade volumes and fuel price trajectories. If demand rebounds and freight rates stabilize, carriers that have locked in cost‑saving mechanisms—particularly through network collaborations—are positioned to capture incremental margin upside. Investors will likely monitor Hapag‑Lloyd’s 2026 earnings closely, assessing whether the anticipated Gemini Network synergies translate into tangible profit recovery, and how the firm navigates ongoing supply‑chain disruptions and geopolitical uncertainties.

Hapag-Lloyd dodges red ink in Q4

Nick Savvides, Europe correspondent · February 9, 2026

Image: Hapag‑Lloyd

In a preliminary release of its annual returns, German carrier Hapag‑Lloyd managed to maintain a profit in 2025 despite nosediving average global spot rates.

Fourth‑quarter EBIT for the carrier was down 75 %, to just $200 m, from the same quarter in 2024, while full‑year EBIT was down to $1.1 bn, from $2.8 bn.

Hapag’s returns were in marked contrast to its much larger Gemini Cooperation partner Maersk, which saw Q4 EBIT at its container‑shipping division hit negative numbers, down to ‑$153 m. The Danish carrier’s full‑year EBIT of $1.38 bn did outperform Hapag‑Lloyd’s $1.1 bn.

Container volumes were up 200,000 teu in Q4 last year, compared to the same quarter in 2024, while full‑year volumes were up by 1 m teu to 13.5 m teu.

Average freight rates in the last quarter of 2025 were $1,310/teu, down more than $250/teu year‑on‑year, while full‑year average spot rates were $1,376/teu, down $116/teu.

In the equivalent periods, Maersk’s average Q4 spot rates were $1,023/teu, while for the full year they were $1,118/teu.

“Robust growth in global trade and the new Gemini Network led to an 8 % increase in the transport volume, to 13.5 m teu,” Hapag‑Lloyd reported, adding that “higher costs due to the ongoing rerouting of ships via the Cape of Good Hope and start‑up expenses for the Gemini Network weighed on the annual results.”

The company said that alliance‑related cost savings were being realised by the second half of last year and the expectation is that those savings will be evident across the whole of 2026.