Hapag-Lloyd reported a decrease in profits for the first nine months of the year due to global trade disputes affecting demand and freight rates. Revenue increased to $16.05 billion, but profits fell to $946 million from $1.83 billion the previous year.

Despite an increase in transport volumes to 10.2 million TEUs from 9.3 million TEUs, Hapag-Lloyd’s margins decreased to 17% and 6% for EBITDA and EBIT, respectively. The company attributed the lower margins to low freight rates and rising costs.

Hapag-Lloyd and Maersk formed the Gemini alliance, boosting the former’s Asia volume by 19.2%. However, the carrier’s liner EBITDA and EBIT margins dropped to 15.5% and 4%, affected by network transition costs and congestion-related expenses.

Average freight rates decreased to $1,397 per TEU, down 4.8% from the previous year, despite a 6.1% increase in volume. Hapag-Lloyd adjusted its full-year EBITDA forecast to $3.1 billion-$3.6 billion and EBIT to $600 million-$1.1 billion.

Read more at Yahoo Finance: Trade volatility hits Hapag-Lloyd profits