Aug. 27, 2009 (China Knowledge) - Tianjin Port Development Holdings Ltd<3382>, a Tianjin-based logistics service provider, announced that its net losses amounted to HK$15.9 million in the first half of this year, compared with the net profit of HK$140.7 million in the same period of last year.

The company attributed the losses to waning market demand and declining charges for cargo handling.

The company's operating revenue fell 8.2% year on year to HK$571.1 million in the first half of this year.

During the first half of this year, profit from port cargo handling plunged 79.39% year on year to HK$25.55 million, while sales business earned HK$2.02 million.

The firm handled 1.21 million twenty-foot equivalent units during that period, down 6.7% year on year, while the bulk cargo throughput decreased 8.4% from a year earlier to 5.97 million tons.

The group said that it will seek business opportunities that will provide sustainable growth, and forecast that the container handling business will improve in the second half of this year.