Nippon Yusen and Kawasaki Kisen Kaisha, Japan’s biggest and third-biggest shipping companies, reported record quarterly profits as they benefited from higher freight rates amid the chaos hitting global supply chains.

The logjams and bottlenecks in the world’s trade system, which threatens to derail a recovery from the worst health crisis in a century, has provided a bonanza to such companies as freight rates soared to the highest since 2008. “Port and inland congestion did not improve due to a shortage of drivers for inland haulage,” Nippon Yusen said on Thursday in comments on the results for the three months through Sept. 30.

Quarterly profit came to 260 billion yen, more than 25 times last year’s amount, according to calculations by Reuters from the company’s first fiscal half earnings announced on Thursday.

That is the highest quarterly profit for the company, according to Refinitiv Eikon data going back to December 2002.

Supply chain snarls have contributed to fuel shortages in Europe and Asia as the winter approaches and are threatening Christmas shopping even as freight rates have come off their highs.

Transport executives and analysts say the problems are likely to continue into 2022 and a U.S. agency is investigating improper freight charges.

 

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