Workers at the Port of Felixstowe face a nervous wait as shipping giant AP Moller Maersk slashes thousands of job worldwide.

The Danish Group - which is reeling from a slump in demand for container freight - is cutting its global workforce from 110,000 to 100,000 as it slashes costs by £491m next year.

Maersk said it had already cut around 6,500 jobs this year and that another 3,500 would go as it ramps up its cost-saving efforts.

Most of the latest round - up to 2,500 - will be axed in the coming months, with the remainder scheduled for 2024.

But the firm – which is the world’s second biggest shipping container business – has declined to give details on the impact of the jobs losses on its UK operations.

Maersk has operations at UK ports, including a main office in Liverpool, as well as sites in Belfast in Northern Ireland, Felixstowe in Suffolk, Grangemouth in Scotland, London Gateway in Corringham, Portsmouth, South Shields, Southampton and Tilbury in Essex.

Across the UK and Ireland it has bases at 12 ports, 23 depots and nine dedicated refrigerated container facilities.

The shipping industry boomed during the pandemic when companies were struggling to secure stock and costs soared - but has seen a downturn in demand as the situation normalised.

In an update on Friday, Maersk warned its profits in 2024 would be at the lower end of previous guidance as it reported a steep drop in sales and earnings in its third quarter.

Maersk chief executive Vincent Clerc said: “Our industry is facing a new normal with subdued demand, prices back in line with historical levels and inflationary pressure on our cost base.”

He added: “Given the challenging times ahead, we accelerated several cost and cash containment measures to safeguard our financial performance.”

AJ Bell investment director Russ Mould said the profit alert is troubling, given Maersk’s status as an economic bellwether and a “fair proxy for global growth”.

“Transportation demand will be strong if the economy is going well, but the opposite will apply if there are clouds on the horizon," he said.

“Maersk’s 9% share price slump on its latest results would suggest the global economy is losing speed.”