DSV has blamed a first quarter dip in turnover and EBITDA in its road division on “fierce competition” and a reduction in average consignment size.

Although the operator said costs declined as a result of “capacity adjustments” in 2012, EBITDA fell 8.9% to DKK 234m (£26.6m), compared to DKK 257m (£29.2m) in 2012, its results for the three months ending 31 March showed.

Turnover also dropped slightly from DKK 5.7bn in Q1 2012 to DKK 5.6bn in the same period in 2013. The company attributed this to a lower average price per shipment than in Q1 2012.

The operator has also forecast a 1% to 2% decline in volumes during 2013.

DSV chief executive Jens Bjørn Andersen said: “The results achieved for the first three months of 2013 match our expectations on most parameters.”

This year, the company will also focus on organic growth, cost control and acquisitions across the DSV network, he added.

DSV Road recently introduced its Daily Pallet service, which will see it cover pallet transport on routes across 32 European countries.