May.17--Danish oil and shipping group A.P. Moeller-Maersk reported a 1 percent rise in net profit in the first quarter 2012, and slightly upgraded its annual outlook, the company said here Wednesday.
    Net profit for the first quarter stood at 1.17 billion U.S. dollars, up slightly from 1.16 billion dollars for the same period last year, the group said in a statement.
    However, Maersk saw its container-shipping business suffer a sharp loss, owing to "continued loss-making rates in the container and tanker markets."
    Group revenue for the three months ending March, stood at 14.3 billion dollars, down one percent, year-on-year, it said in the statement.
    Maersk Group slightly upgraded its annual outlook, saying it "expects a result for 2012 slightly lower than the level reported in 2011," against its previously announced "positive result lower than the 2011 result."
    Maersk Line, which is the group's container-shipping business and the world's biggest container-shipping company, made a loss of 599 million dollars in the quarter, compared to 424 million dollars profit for the same period last year.
    The group "expects a negative up to neutral result in 2012" for Maersk Line, based on expectations that freight rates will continue to recover, as they have done since March.
    In its annual report February, Maersk Group had said it expected a 2012 loss in its container shipping business.
    Meanwhile, Maersk Oil, the group's oil and gas business, reported 1.3 billion dollars profit in the first quarter 2012, up from 0.5 billion dollars in 2011.
    Higher global oil prices have helped boost earnings, while decline in share of production in the group's fields had a negative effect, the group said.
    The group's terminals and drilling businesses also reported profit of 235 million dollars and 125 millions dollars respectively, in the first quarter.

(Source:Xinhua)