COSCO Pacific Ltd, Asia's third-largest container-terminal operator, boosted second-half profit 81 percent, helped by surging Chinese exports and the sale of a stake in a bank.

Net income rose to US$279.3 million from US$154.7 million a year earlier. COSCO Pacific booked a US$90.7-million gain after it sold a stake in Chong Hing Bank Ltd to focus on sea-cargo. The company follows larger rivals Hutchison Port Holdings Ltd and PSA International Pte in posting higher profit after a 26-percent jump in Chinese exports last year boosted global trade.

"The company will have to make more acquisitions to keep up its growth rate," Jimmy Lam, a Hong Kong-based analyst at BOC International Holdings Ltd, told Bloomberg News. "The rate of trade growth may slow slightly this year."

COSCO Pacific's 19 global container terminal ventures boosted total volume 22 percent last year to 39.8 million boxes, helped by the addition of ventures in the Chinese ports of Ningbo and Guangzhou, as well as in Egypt. Traffic growth slipped to 19 percent in the first two months of this year.

"The US subprime problems are certainly having an effect on China's exports," Xu Minjie, the Hong Kong-based firm's managing director, said yesterday. "Shipments to the US are slowing, but exports to Europe are still growing."

The shipper will more than double its investments in new terminals to US$605 million this year, predominately dry-bulk facilities, Xu said.

(Shanghai Daily April 8, 2008)