(Yicai Global) Aug. 31 -- Cosco Shipping Holdings, China's largest container shipping company, increased its net profit almost 32 times in the first six months of this year amid the booming logistics sector.

Net profit soared more than 3,000 percent to CNY37.1 billion (USD5.7 billion) in the first half from a year ago as the container shipping market continued to improve, the Beijing-based company said in its earnings report yesterday. Revenue surged 88 percent to CNY139.3 billion (USD21.6 billion).

The global shipping demand growth rate is expected to be 6.2 percent this year as supply chains have been impacted by port congestion and container shortages which have driven freight rate hikes, Cosco said, citing British shipping agency Clarksons.

That is already showing in China's export sector. The China Containerized Freight Index was at 2,066.64 on average in the first half, up nearly 138 percent from a year earlier, according to the report. That was a more than 92 percent increase from the second half of 2020.

But the frenzy may not last forever. The lull of the Covid-19 pandemic was boosting Cosco's annual figures but the hikes were more modest in quarter-to-quarter comparison. In the second quarter, net profit rose 40 percent to CNY21.6 billion from the first quarter. Revenue climbed 15 percent to CNY74.4 billion.

Almost 98 percent of Cosco's total revenue in the first half came from container shipping. At CNY136.4 billion, the segment's income had climbed almost 91 percent from a year ago. Meanwhile, terminal business revenue rose 15 percent to CNY3.7 billion (USD572.6 million).

Cosco operated more than 290 routes as of June 30, reaching about 100 countries and regions around the world.

The incredible gains didn't manage to boost the firm's share price. Cosco [SHA: 601919] was 5.7 percent down at CNY20.74 (USD3.20) in the afternoon.

Editor: Emmi Laine, Xiao Yi