Higher freight charges help BSC post stellar growth in Q3 profits

The Bangladesh Shipping Corporation (BSC) posted a staggering growth of 183% in year-on-year profits for the January to March quarter of the ongoing fiscal compared to the same period last year, thanks to an increase in freight charges.

During the quarter, the company's earnings per share (EPS) stood at Tk3.31, which was Tk1.17 for the same period of the previous year.

In the July to March period of fiscal 2021-22, its EPS jumped 310% to Tk11.59 compared to the same nine months of the previous fiscal.

According to the company's earnings disclosure on the Dhaka Stock Exchange (DSE) website on Thursday, its profit increased significantly because of an increase in international shipping fares.

Owing to the stellar profit growth, BSC's share price on Thursday soared 5% to Tk118.70 each at the DSE compared to the previous trading session. Its shares reached a peak of Tk149 each on 6 February this year.

According to Statista, a data analysis organisation, freight rates increased dramatically between January 2019 and April 2022. Year 2021 saw an especially steep increase in global freight rates, reaching a record of nearly $10,400 in September 2021. In April 2022, the global freight rate index stood at about $7,800 which was only $5,000 in 2020.

Currently, BSC operates eight ocean going vessels, of which, one Banglar Samriddhi came under attack in the Russia-Ukraine war.

A BSC official said Banglar Samriddhi was hit by a rocket while anchored in the Alvia port channel of Ukraine on 2 March during the war. The front of the ship got damaged in the missile attack and its third engineer Hadisur Rahman was killed.

The merchant ship was chartered under agreement with the Danish Charter Delta Corporation, he added.

The BSC has filed an insurance claim of around $22.8 million with Sadharan Bima Corporation, but has not yet received any payment against the claim, said the company official.