SHANGHAI/HONGKONG, Aug 27 (Reuters) - China COSCO Holdings, the flagship of the country's premier shipping conglomerate, swung to a net loss in the first half as the global recession battered the shipping industry.
China COSCO said it booked a 4.59 billion yuan ($671.9 million) net loss during the period, compared with a 15.12 billion yuan profit a year earlier.
The loss was slightly smaller than a consensus forecast of 4.84 billion yuan loss from four analysts polled by Reuters.
China COSCO warned in July of a first-half loss as both its bulk cargo fleet, the largest in the world, and its container ship operation, the world's No. 6, recorded losses.
Shares of China COSCO rose 71 percent in Hong Kong in the first six months, beating a 28 percent gain on the blue chip Hang Seng Index in the same period.
Its Shanghai shares rose about 80 percent in the first half. ($1=6.831 Yuan) (Reporting by Fang Yan and Jacqueline Wong; Editing by Rupert Winchester)