The Danish/Swedish port company Copenhagen Malmö Port (CMP) has reportede a pre-tax profit of SEK 181 million, an increase of 24 percent for 2008 over 2007. Net revenue was up 7 percent to SEK 784 million.

The financial performance continued to improve, building on the positive foundations laid down in recent years, the port said in a prepared statement. Since the company was founded in 2001, net sales have increased by 69 percent and annual earnings have multiplied many times over, but staff numbers have risen by just 8 percent.

CMP’s cruise-ship and ferry traffic increased in 2008, while the number of automobiles and the volume of construction materials processed fell. Net freight sales amounted to 18 million tons, down 1 percent on the previous year.

While changing market conditions in the transport and logistics sector are expected to have a negative effect on CMP in 2009, net freight sales are expected to remain on more or less the same level as 2008. Only a single business area (cruise ships) is expected to experience significant growth in 2009. A total of 330 cruise ships are scheduled to call at the port, compared with 301 in 2008.

The basic idea underpinning CMP is to service commercial shipping in the Øresund Region, and exploit the business potential of the Baltic Sea. It has proven to be a highly sustainable concept, according to the port statement.