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The effect of US reciprocal tariffs on businesses of International Container Terminal Services, Inc. is still too premature to tell, chairman and president Enrique K. Razon, Jr. said
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Razon said the group has a diverse portfolio, with US trade accounting for only 3% of the total
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Operations in the Port of Manzanillo in Mexico could potentially bear the greatest impact though
The effect of US reciprocal tariffs on businesses of International Container Terminal Services, Inc. (ICTSI) is still too premature to tell, chairman and president Enrique K. Razon, Jr. said.
During the global port operator’s annual stockholders’ meeting on April 24, Razon said US President Donald Trump’s daily “flip flopping” on the issue is “creating chaos throughout the global economy,” noting “It’s… too early to tell how these tariffs will finally settle when all the dust has settled.”
He noted that the group has a diverse portfolio, with US trade accounting for only 3% of the total business.
Razon acknowledged that “the only major impact that could be possible or potential would be our Manzanillo terminal in Mexico but so far it’s still wait and see.”
ICTSI no longer has operations in the US after its unit, ICTSI Oregon, officially terminated its 25-year lease agreement to operate Terminal 6 at the Port of Portland, Oregon in 2017. The group is currently involved in 32 terminal operations, including concessions and port development projects, in 19 countries worldwide.
“I suspect that with the massive industrial installed capacity of China, they will be looking for other markets, and if they’re unable to access the US market. So maybe, one offsets the other but still too early to tell,” Razon noted.
This year, Razon said he is excited about “how we can further outdo ourselves” following ICTSI’s “best year ever” last year.
In 2024, Razon said ICTSI set records “across the board financially and in operational efficiency,” although “not without challenges in global politics.”
READ: ICTSI reports all-time high net income of $849.8M in 2024
He explained: “Our performance was exceptional to say the least. We achieved these new milestones thanks to strategic initiatives and diligent efforts from every member of ICTSI, which allowed us to reinvest in the organization, improving our infrastructure, technology, and support systems to ensure sustained momentum.”
The port operator reported an all-time high net income attributable to equity holders of $849.8 million in 2024, a 66% surge from $511.53 million earned in 2023.
Moreover, Razon said new record volumes were recorded in a number of ICTSI’s terminals, including, among others, Contecon Manzanillo S.A. (CMSA), Victoria International Container Terminal (VICT), and Manila International Container Terminal (MICT).
The group handled a consolidated volume of 13.067 million 20-foot equivalent units (TEUs), 2% higher than the 12.749 million TEUs recorded in 2023.
Other highlights:
- Last year, ICTSI was awarded the 25-year contract to operate and modernize the Iloilo Commercial Port Complex, which it renamed Visayas Container Terminal.
- VICT last year completed its expansion project, which increased the Melbourne terminal’s capacity by 30% to 1.25 million TEUs.
- East Java Multipurpose Terminal, ICTSI’s operation in Indonesia, opened for business in October 2024.
- The International Longshore and Warehouse Union and ICTSI unit, ICTSI Oregon, Inc. reached a settlement totaling $20.5 million to resolve a labor dispute.
- ICTSI purchased a 27-hectare property in Bauan, Batangas for use of its new international container terminal, Luzon International Container Terminal (LICT), which will become the largest privately-funded marine terminal investment in the Philippines, and the country’s second-largest container facility after ICTSI’s flagship, MICT.
- Mindanao International Container Terminal Services, Inc. in December last year secured a 25-year extension to operate and manage Mindanao Container Terminal in Tagaloan, Misamis Oriental.
The group’s estimated capital expenditures for 2025 is approximately $580 million, higher than last year’s $517.14 million. It will be utilized mainly for the continued development of LICT, phase 3B expansion in CMSA, expansion of MICT and ICTSI DR Congo S.A.; new expansion projects at ICTSI Rio and MCT; various other equipment acquisitions and upgrades; and maintenance capex.
