Xinhua recently reported that China Ocean Shipping (Group) Company (COSCO) reported a 10.5 billion yuan (〜US$1.67 million) loss in 2011. The company blamed its poor performance on the decline of the global economy and suggested that the entire ocean shipping industry is showing a loss. The second reason identified for the loss was the rising cost of oil. The fourth quarter loss accounted for more than half of the total annual loss. The COSCO CEO, Wei Jiafu, suggested that, based on the signs of recovery in the United States and Europe, it is expected that the global container shipping market will improve during the year 2012. The Chinese government owned COSCO is one of the largest liner shipping companies in the world. COSCO stops at over 1,000 ports around the globe.
Source: Xinhua, March 31, 2012
http://news.xinhuanet.com/fortune/2012-03/31/c_122913532.htm