Taiwan's Yang Ming Marine reported a sharp fall in third-quarter profit as weaker freight rates and global trade uncertainty weighed on results, reported UK's Seatrade Maritime News.

Consolidated revenues fell 40.53 per cent to NT$42.09 billion (US$1.35 billion), while after-tax profit dropped 78.24 per cent to NT$6.05 billion compared with the same period in 2024. The company said softer profitability reflected volatile market conditions.

Yang Ming noted that despite uncertainty and geopolitical risks, it has maintained schedule reliability and improved operational efficiency. Alphaliner projected global container capacity growth at 6.8 per cent against demand growth of two per cent, signalling continued oversupply.

The carrier said new environmental regulations, including the EU Emissions Trading System and FuelEU Maritime, will accelerate the phase-out of older vessels and moderate effective capacity through slow steaming and fleet renewal.

A temporary pause in US-China tariff tensions may stimulate pre-Lunar New Year demand on Transpacific routes, while intra-Asia and Middle East markets are expected to remain steady. However, Red Sea disruptions, Cape of Good Hope rerouting and European port congestion may continue to affect deployment.

Yang Ming said it will monitor market developments closely and respond with agility through service-network optimisation and operational adjustments.