The Danish shipping giant Maersk on Thursday reported stronger-than-expected operating results for the third quarter and raised its full-year forecast, supported by increased container volumes. The company, which is widely seen as a gauge of global trade, announced a preliminary underlying profit 'before interest, taxes, and depreciation' of $2.68 billion for the July-September period. This is higher than the $2.6 billion that analysts had forecast, but sharply down from $4.8 billion during the same period of the previous year. The company raised its forecast for full-year operating profit to between $9 billion and $9.5 billion, up from the previous guidance.
