(LEAD) HMM's Q3 net rises 13.3 pct despite industry slump concerns

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SEOUL, Nov. 9 (Yonhap) -- HMM Co., South Korea's top container shipper, said Wednesday its third-quarter earnings rose more than 13 percent on-year despite worries about an industry slump.

Consolidated net profit came to 2.61 trillion won (US$1.91 billion) in the July-September period, up 13.3 percent from a year earlier, the company said in a regulatory filing.

Sales surged 27.1 percent on-year to 5.11 trillion won, with operating profit climbing 14.5 percent to 2.6 trillion won.

HMM said the company fared well in the third quarter thanks to a favorable market situation and efforts to improve profitability in spite of such negative factors as high oil prices and falling freight rates.

Yet HMM's third-quarter operating profit was lower than its all-time record of 3.15 trillion won for the first quarter and the second quarter's 2.94 trillion won, pointing to a marked downturn in earnings.

HMM forecast global container volume to slow from the fourth quarter due to a shift in consumer spending to the service sector, weaker purchasing power stemming from rising interest rates and retailers' rising inventory.

A sharp drop in container shipping rates is also feared to have a negative impact on the shipper's fourth-quarter results.

The Shanghai Containerized Freight Index, a barometer of global freight rates, stood at a yearly low of 1,579.21 on Friday, down 65 percent from a year earlier and falling for 20 weeks on end.

Shares in HMM ended 0.73 percent down at 20,500 won on the Seoul bourse, underperforming the broader KOSPI's 1.06 percent gain. The earnings report was released after the market closed.

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