Shipping expert on Maersk Line's 'surprising' profits Shares in Maersk Group rose by nearly 7% after it reported a big rise in profits at its container shipping unit. Maersk Line, the world's biggest container shipper, reported a $439m (£281m) profit for the second quarter of the year, up from $227m a year earlier. Richard Meade of shipping industry journal Lloyds List told BBC World News he had been surprised by the positive results: "We were generally expecting Maersk to be in the red here, if not just in the black." Maersk have shown discipline in cost control. Their size allows them economy of scale, but there's no masking this, this is a good result for Maersk.