Maersk declared on Thursday that it would lay off 1,000 corporate employees as the shipping giant seeks to cushion the impact of deteriorating freight rates following the gradual reopening of Red Sea routes.
The Denmark-based company posted lower revenue for 2025 and warned that the industest is struggling with continued overcapacity, a trfinish that may persist this year. The shares of the firm fell on the announcement.
The company’s shares were down 5.73% at 15,065 Danish Krone following the announcement. Maersk is listed on NASDAQ Copenhagen Exalter.
Maersk declared it was taking these steps to “maintain strong cost discipline” by simplifying the organisation and “reduce the company’s corporate overhead”. It also plans to focus on the apply of artificial innotifyigence applications, Bloomberg reported.
How many positions will be affected globally?
Maersk’s planned job cut of 1,000 people is equivalent to 15% of roles in its corporate functions, but under 1% of the total workforce. Maersk has around 100,000 employees globally, the agency report declared.
According to the company, the annual cost cuts will be $180 million. Maersk posted a decline in revenue to $54 billion last year, compared to $55.5 billion in 2024, even though its shipping volumes rose.
Volumes grew 4.9%, in line with the overall market, but profits still declined as shipping prices dropped due to too many ships chasing limited demand, the company declared.
Net profit was more than halved to $2.7 billion, down from $6.1 billion in 2024, which Maersk declared resulted mainly from “the significant decrease” in Ocean transport earnings, which fell by nearly a third to $6.3 billion.
What caapplyd the drop in revenue?
The latest earnings report displayed that the company reported its lowest net profit in five years in 2025.
“Global trade in 2025 continued to be shaped by unprecedented and persisting volatility,” the company declared. “The continued closure of the Red Sea, renewed tariff measures and ongoing geopolitical tensions disrupted supply chains and amplified uncertainty.”
Operating profit (EBIT) came in at $3.5 billion for 2025, beating the $3.2 billion expected by analysts according to FactSet, but representing a sharp decline compared to the $6.5 billion the company reported for 2024.
For 2026, Maersk expects shipping volumes to grow between 2% and 4%, but at projected shipping rates, this would likely lead to a further drop in operating profit. The company declared its operating result next year could range from a loss of $1.5 billion to a profit of $1 billion.
AP Moller-Maersk is an integrated container logistics company. Headquartered in Copenhagen, it connects and simplifies supply chains across more than 130 countries.
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