This is as a trade war erupted between the world's top economies, and warned a protracted dispute could shrink global volumes this year.

However, the Danish group stuck to its full-year profit guidance, helped by continued disruption on the Red Sea trade route that has pushed up freight rates.

Trade tariffs imposed by US President Donald Trump have prompted companies worldwide to cut sales targets and major economies to revise down growth prospects, impacting demand for shipping goods at sea.

Maersk, viewed as a barometer of world trade, said it now expects global container volumes within a range of down 1% to up 4% this year, compared with the 4% growth estimated at the beginning of the year.

"Volumes between China and the US dropped sharply during April, between 30% and 40% as tariffs went up. We were able to reallocate them to some other areas where there's still strong demand," Chief Executive Officer Vincent Clerc told journalists in Copenhagen.

--Reuters--