Danish transport and logistics giant DSV has maintained its outlook for 2024 as market normalisation continued in the first quarter of the year. DSV still expects its EBIT to land between DKK 15,000 – DKK 17,000 million ($2.1-$2.4 billion).

“In a normalising market, we are off to a good start delivering strong financial results in the first quarter of 2024, and I am particularly satisfied that we are gaining market shares in all three divisions. We have also completed the leadership changes, the organisation has settled, and together with the new and experienced leadership team we will concentrate our efforts on executing on our strategy, with particular focus on our customers,” commented Jens H. Lund, Group CEO.

The market conditions have pushed DSV’s revenue down some 5 per cent in Q1 2024 versus the Q1 2023 figures. Revenue for the quarter under review landed at DKK 38,340 million ($5.5 billion). Earnings before interest and taxes (EBIT) DKK 3,641 million ($5.2 billion) for the first quarter of 2024, compared to DKK 4,672 million ($6.7 billion) last year. In constant currencies, EBIT before special items was down 20.8 per cent, mainly due to the lower gross profit of Air and Sea.

Read more: DSV reports expected earnings drop 

Lower EBIT, however, was highlighted by the company as the main contributing factor to the decline in profit for the period which landed at DKK 2,393 million ($3.4 billion), compared to DKK 3,287 million ($4.7 Billion) for the same period of 2023.

The Air and Sea division’s revenue dropped 11.5 per cent due to lower freight rates, despite increased air and sea volumes. While spot rates are higher YoY, average contract rates are lower this period. Road and Solutions divisions had a good start to Q1 2024 with organic growth in both. Road’s increase was driven by higher volumes, offset by lower rates and fewer working days than last year. Solutions added capacity across most regions, increasing overall activity.