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Strong first-quarter results notwithstanding, all ears were tuned to the thoughts of DHL’s chief executive, Tobias Meyer, on jet fuel pricing and availability, as the Israeli/US war on Iran lingers, echoing recent earnings calls elsewhere. Despite a 1.9% year-on-year drop in revenue over the three months to April, DHL Group earnings (EBIT) jumped 8.3% on the same period in 2025, falling just shy of €1.5bn ($1.7bn), driven by booming profitability in its Express division. Mr Meyer told investors: “We’ve very good momentum, but it has been another volatile quarter, with external conditions to deal with; and while the Middle East is a relatively small part of overall group revenue, it obviously has implications. “A worry across the industry, and more broadly regards the macroeconomic impact the situation has, for us especially this means the price of kerosene, jet fuel and diesel.” Investors did not need encouragement to question Mr Meyer and group CFO Melanie Kreis, half their queries concerned the impact of fuel price and availability since the onset of hostilities in the Gulf, reflecting the recent UPS earnings call. Asked if the fuel issues could be “constraining factor” on the group’s medium-term aspirations, Mr Meyer said it was important to differentiate between hubs and airports where DHL had its own infrastructure. “At Leipzig, we have dedicated infrastructure for fuel supply, and we’ve intense dialogue and greater visibility and certainty about supply continuing, and being sufficient to fully support our operations,” he said. “In contrast, our more bespoke locations, especially in Asia, where we do not have such a setup and very much depend on availability of fuel from local suppliers, we are finding our choices limited.” Nonetheless, Mr Meyer added, even in these locations he thought DHL was in better shape than other airlines, noting that for regional and short-haul flights “we still have the option to tanker-in fuel,” even if this was not viable for long-haul services. But, he said, it was obvious that a continued daily [global] shortfall of 10m to 12m barrels of crude oil would mean “something has to give at some point” – a fact not lost on several Indian carriers that have warned of service suspensions if fuel price rises continued. The Federation of Indian Airlines (FIA) wants government intervention to address spiking fuel prices, suggesting re-implementing pandemic-era price caps or deferment of taxes – but a loss of local capacity could help DHL. While its Global Forwarding division had a quarter to forget – a 5% year-on-year revenue drop, to €4.5bn sent earnings plummeting 18.5%, to €164m – there was a 3.8% uptick in airfreight volumes, driven largely by demand out of Asia and Latin America. Inside the industry’s AI shift Complete The Loadstar’s ‘State of AI in the Supply Chain’ survey — and receive the full report and data before release. Take the 2-min survey

Despite all the talk about supply chain resiliency and dynamic souring, actual supply chain shifts take place at the sort of speed commonly observed amongst tectonic plates. In other words, years of long, hard work. For over a decade, The Loadstar has covered the rise of Vietnam as it has transformed itself into a top tier manufacturing location, drawing investment away from China as multinationals initially adopted a China-plus-one approach, first as a way of reducing rising costs of production in China ...

Ocean Network Express (ONE) reported a sharp decline in earnings for full-year 2025, as weaker freight rates and soft demand weighed on performance despite stable volumes. The Singapore-headquartered carrier grouping posted full-year revenue of $16.6bn for the period April 2025 to March 2026, down 14% year on year. EBITDA fell 54%, to $2.75bn, while EBIT dropped 92%, to $310m. Net profit also plunged 92% to $338m. Lifted volumes remained largely flat, up just 1% year on year, to 12.9m teu – an increase of 117,000 teu, which lagged significantly behind overall year-on-year market demand growth of 4.7% last year, according to Container Trades Statistics. ONE said cargo movements had remained “sluggish” in the fourth quarter, although a modest recovery in freight rates helped deliver a quarterly profit of $55m. But for the full year, demand was described as ‘subdued’, although there was some seasonal strength on the Asia-Europe trade ahead of Chinese New Year. The carrier noted that an influx of newbuild tonnage continued to pressure the supply-demand balance, weighing on freight rates. However, this was partially offset by port congestion and severe weather disruption, which tightened effective capacity. Geopolitical tension in the Middle East also pushed up costs, although the direct impact on fourth-quarter earnings was limited. The carrier explained that costs had risen across several areas. Operating expenses increased, due to higher vessel costs and port charges, while variables were driven up by more expensive empty container repositioning. Freight rates also declined overall, amid the softer supply-demand balance, although bunker prices fell year on year and overhead costs remained stable. In the Asia-North America eastbound trade, both the pre-CNY peak and post-holiday recovery were weaker than expected, with volumes trending down year on year. In contrast, ONE noted that Asia-Europe westbound demand had strengthened ahead of the holiday, supporting improved utilisation on both major routes. Chief executive Jeremy Nixon said the line had managed to remain profitable through “disciplined cost control and operational efficiency”, despite the heightened volatility. “While we continue to navigate a complex and volatile global environment, our focus remains on maintaining safe, secure, and reliable operations,” he said, adding that a new leadership structure and service enhancements would support performance in the coming year. And looking ahead, ONE forecasted a full-year profit of around $300m for FY2026, another decline following 2025, and warned that outlook visibility remained limited due to geopolitical risks, particularly in the Middle East. The carrier said the restrictions in the Strait of Hormuz and continued diversion from the Red Sea/Suez Canal route, with vessels still routing via the Cape of Good Hope, had added significant cost pressure. And cargo flows to North America had weakened, while demand for Europe-bound shipments remained comparatively robust. To mitigate disruption, ONE said it had taken “agile measures” across its network, including expanding terminal capacity in key locations such as Laem Chabang and Busan, aimed at stabilising operations and improving service reliability. Inside the industry’s AI shift Complete The Loadstar’s ‘State of AI in the Supply Chain’ survey — and receive the full report and data before release. Take the 2-min survey

Taiwan’s three largest liner operators, Evergreen, Yang Ming and Wan Hai Lines, have called on the island’s government to negotiate with Iran to liberate their ships that have been stuck in the Strait of Hormuz since the US/Israel-Iran war began on 28 February. The three have seven containerships stranded in the strait and yesterday, during the Taipei Shipowners’ Association’s annual meeting, the chairmen of Evergreen and Yang Ming, Chang Yen-yi and Chuck Tsai Feng-ming, said they wre seeking Ministry of Foreign Affairs’ help to negotiate with the Iranian government. Evergreen and Wan Hai each have three vessels stranded, while Yang Ming has one, among an estimated 40 containerships immobile in the area. Containers from the stranded ships have been offloaded, but due to the lack of insurance cover for Hormuz transits, and the US and Iran implementing blockades, none of the companies dares allow ships to move out of the area. Dr Tsai said: “Insurers informed us on Tuesday that vessel coverage was contingent on no private payments [to Iran] and that the government needed to negotiate with Iranian officials to obtain permission for passage….to leave the Strait of Hormuz.” Tehran reportedly plans a toll booth system around the strait, with each transit costing $2m. The chairmen said no transit fees would be paid to Iran, as this contravened the terms of insurance cover on the ships. Iran is sanctioned by the EU and UK and the marine insurance market is dominated by the EU and UK. Mr Chang said: “The shipping association will raise the issue with the government. Geopolitics mean that the global shipping environment remains full of challenges and opportunities.” Inside the industry’s AI shift Complete The Loadstar’s ‘State of AI in the Supply Chain’ survey — and receive the full report and data before release. Take the 2-min survey

All Nippon Airways (ANA) and Nippon Cargo Airlines (NCA) are pushing ahead with their integration. In North America, the pair have aligned sales and pricing to sell one network, while systems integration, the final piece of the puzzle, is expected to be completed halfway through 2027. ANA, Japan’s largest passenger airline, officially acquired 100% of the all-cargo carrier on 1 August of last year. To cargo customers in the US, the pair are now essentially one company. Pricing has been aligned and covers all destinations across their combined network, said Shawn McWhorter, president of NCA Americas. “We’ve aligned all sales activities in the US,” he said. “We’re operating virtually as one company.” NCA operates a fleet of B747 freighters, predominantly deployed on transpacific routes, and ANA runs a B777 freighter to Los Angeles and Chicago, and uses supplemental lift by US freighter operator Kalitta Air to Chicago. Its passenger flights to the US cover New York, Washington, Chicago, Houston, Los Angeles, San Francisco and Seattle. ANA cargo sales personnel as well as the passenger airline’s external freight sales agents have moved under the NCA sales umbrella. Customers can use air waybills of either airline, Mr McWhorter said. To them, it is one carrier made up of several operators – the proprietary flights of ANA and NCA and contracted freighters flown by Kalitta and Atlas Air. Historically, NCA’s sales in the US have concentrated largely on traffic to Japan, but the integration with ANA’s network offers more possibilities to serve customers looking to move freight to other Asian destinations. Sales have also been aligned in Mexico, which both carriers have covered through local GSA contracts. ANA runs a passenger flight between Tokyo and Mexico City, while NCA has been working with Mexican all-cargo airline Mas de Cargo. In December, the pair announced a block space deal to give the Asian carrier space on Mas from Los Angeles to the Mexican capital and to Guadalajara. In return, Mas has space allocations on NCA flights between LA and Tokyo. Connection and capacity arrangements between the two carriers remain unchanged, according to Mr McWhorter. Down the road, he has his eyes on the market between Latin America and Asia, where he sees promising demand, but for now the integration with ANA is taking priority. With the sales integration in North America in the bag, the focus in now on ground handling, the objective to bring the two partners under one roof in locations they both serve, such as Los Angeles and New York JFK. The final step in the fusion of the two Japanese carriers will be on the systems side, where the pair are using different versions. For the time being, they pick which system to use, based on the air waybill in play. “By the middle of 2027, it will be all integrated,” Mr McWhorter said. Inside the industry’s AI shift Complete The Loadstar’s ‘State of AI in the Supply Chain’ survey — and receive the full report and data before release. Take the 2-min survey