AP Moeller-Maersk launches strategic review after unsatisfactory results

Maersk Group launched a strategic review after posting what the company itself described as "unsatisfactory results" in the second quarter, amid low growth and price falls in almost all its markets.

Underlying profit at the shipping group came in at $134m for the latest three-month stretch.

The company reiterated its previous forecast for an underlying result in 2016 "significantly below last year".

Cost reductions and optimisations of its operations helped to cushion the impact of those market conditions, the company said in a statement.

Maersk Line cut costs to their lowest ever, to below $2,000 per forty-foot-equivalent. In parallel, overheads at Maersk Oil were slashed by 25% with the company upholding a break-even level of profits at between $40 to $45 per barrel of crude.

The Copenhagen-based firm added that its financial position remained strong, with liquidity reserves standing at $11.5bn at the end of the reporting period.

As of 12:28 BST shares in the company were 3.64% higher to 9,395 kroner.