Aramex, a leading global provider of logistics solutions, has posted net profits of Dh122 million ($33.2 million) for the second quarter (Q2) of the year, as compared to Dh97 million in Q2 2017, marking a growth of 26 per cent.

The company’s net profit in the first half of 2018 increased by 20 per cent to Dh225.7 million, compared to Dh188.7 million for the same period of 2017.

Revenues for the quarter rose by 7 per cent to Dh1,232 million, compared to Dh1,147 million in the corresponding period of 2017. H1 2018 revenue reached Dh2,422 million, up by 7 per cent compared to Dh2,253 million in the same period 2017.

Bashar Obeid, chief executive officer of Aramex, said: “We are extremely pleased with our results this quarter, which are attributed to the increase in demand for our services across most of our businesses and to our restructuring efforts.”

“We continue to witness a boom in the global e-commerce market, and have been able to reap the benefits of that trend by boosting our investments in last-mile delivery solutions while enhancing our service levels. We also had encouraging growth in our Freight Forwarding services specifically from the Oil and Gas segment, which enjoyed a double-digit growth this quarter.

“Moving forward, we will continue to deliver on our digital transformation strategy. We are confident our efforts will reflect positively on our financial performance while enabling us to drive efficiencies and improve our processes by trimming costs and becoming leaner, which will ultimately enhance the customer experience and expand our bottom line,” he added.

Iyad Kamal, chief operating officer at Aramex, added: “We are very proud of the progress we have made this year in enhancing our service levels and efficiently meeting the last-mile capacity needs of our clients globally.”

“This year, we have significantly improved our service levels and transit times both, globally and regionally, which is a direct reflection of our investments in delivery capabilities and entering into strong, strategic partnerships to upgrade our services in Europe and the Americas.

“Innovation, which is a key pillar of our strategy, continues to drive solutions across the company’s operations to boost customer experience and maximize efficiencies,” he added.

Aramex's International Express witnessed excellent growth in Q2, up by 10 per cent to Dh528 million compared to the prior year period, while  the Domestic Express business grew 6 per cent to Dh262 million.

Commenting on Aramex’s outlook for the remainder of 2018, Bashar Obeid said: “We are on-track to deliver strong results this year, as we continue to focus on strategic initiatives to transform our business into a technology-driven enterprise and uplift operational efficiencies.”

“While e-commerce continues to drive the growth of our Express business, we are strategically committed to expanding our B2B and Freight Forwarding capabilities to leverage great business opportunities in our markets starting with the Oil and Gas segment,” he concluded. – TradeArabia News Service