CAI INTERNATIONAL INC., a lessor of intermodal freight containers, has reported net income of US$5.7 million for the second quarter of 2010 as compared to net income of $3.3 million for the same period last year.

Total revenue for the second quarter was $17.4 million as compared to $16.7 million for the second quarter of 2009. Container rental revenue was $14.0 million, up from $13.5 million. Management fee revenue was $2.5 million.

Container rental revenue increased by 13.2 per cent during the second quarter, with average utilisation for the quarter improving by 8.8 per cent to 95.1 per cent.

Container demand was said to have remained strong during the third quarter, and as of July 30, 2010 utilisation had risen to 97.5 per cent.

During June, CAI sold approximately 10,700 TEU of containers to two container investor groups and entered into management agreements with the same investors. During July, CAI purchased approximately 21,300 TEU from an unnamed investor, reports MarketWatch Bulletin.

"We believe container investors in Asia and Europe are becoming more interested in investing in containers as a result of the improved utilisation of containers and the outlook for the container shipping industry.

"We remain optimistic about the prospects in 2010 and beyond. We expect demand to remain strong this year and we will continue to invest in new containers to meet our customers' demand," the company said in a statement.

Source: shipping online