SINGAPORE—Neptune Orient Lines Ltd., Southeast Asia’s largest container-shipping company, rose to the highest in almost five months in Singapore trading after first-quarter profit almost tripled on higher freight rates and cargo volume.

Neptune Orient advanced 19 cents, or 5.1 percent, to S$3.95 in morning trading Thursday in Singapore.

Rising demand for low-cost goods made in Asia has allowed Neptune Orient and other shipping companies to boost freight rates on routes to Europe, helping cushion the effect of a slowdown in the US margins as the container business improved to 5.3 percent in the quarter from 1.8 percent the year before, Neptune Orient said Wednesday.

The earnings reflect Neptune Orient’s “premium pricing power and competitive cost advantages, which better positions it to maintain profitability in a slowing environment,” Sophie Loh, Chin Lim and Pey Herng Yap, analysts at Morgan Stanley, said in a report Thursday.

Neptune Orient Wednesday said net income almost tripled to $120.7 million while sales increased 27 percent to $2.41 billion.

Average freight rates will probably increase by 11.6 percent this year on expectations that shipping companies will be able to pass most of higher fuel costs to customers, particularly on trans-Pacific routes, Morgan Stanley estimated.

“We believe there exists further upside for Neptune Orient Lines stock should liners be able to incorporate freight-rate hikes in the May trans-Pacific freight-rate negotiations,” Morgan Stanley analysts said. Bloomberg

Eperformax won’t touch needs of shipping firms

CALL-center operator Eperformax Contact Centers, an affiliate of one of the country’s largest shipping firms owned by the Delgados, said it is not interested in diversifying its operations and serve the logistical needs of various foreign and local shipping firms, and would instead focus on its core business.

HONG KONG—China National Foreign Trade Transportation (Group) Corp., also known as Sinotrans Group, and China Changjiang National Shipping Group Corp. are likely to combine, the South China Morning Post said, citing Zhang Jianwei, executive director of Sinotrans Ltd., a Hong Kong-listed unit of Sinotrans Group.

SINGAPORE—Neptune Orient Lines Ltd., Southeast Asia’s largest container-shipping company, rose to the highest in almost five months in Singapore trading after first-quarter profit almost tripled on higher freight rates and cargo volume.

PORT HEDLAND—Fortescue Metals Group Ltd., run by Australia’s richest man Andrew Forrest, began loading the first iron ore from its A$2.8-billion ($2.6 billion) Pilbara project for shipment from Western Australia’s Port Hedland to China.

DHL, the world’s leading express and logistics company, has launched Gogreen Express, an environment-friendly service that reduces the transportation emissions of shipments in the Asia- Pacific region.