P&O sails away from its joint venture with Nedlloyd

P&O made a pre-tax profit of �80m, up from a pre-tax loss of �135m last year, but lower than forecasts of �95m.

Last month the company announced its long-awaited partial exit from P&O Nedlloyd, its container shipping joint venture with Dutch firm Royal Nedlloyd.

P&O chairman Lord Sterling said the group had made great progress.

"P&O has made significant progress this year, not only strategically but also in our operating and financial results," said chairman Lord Sterling.

"With the continuing strong growth in world trade, 2004 should see us move further ahead."