The weekly newspaper for air cargo professionals Volume: 20 Issue: 35 11 September 2017
The beat goes on as double digit growth continues in July
uly has been another strong month for air cargo, with WorldACD and the International Air Transport Association (IATA) both reporting double digit growth. WorldACD says year-on-year (YOY) volumes were up 11.8 per cent, with above average growth of 14.2 per cent from Europe, 13.5 per cent from Middle East & South Asia and 13 per cent from Asia Pacific. The southern hemisphere was weaker, with growth of 3.6 per cent in South America and 2.6 per cent in Africa. WorldACD comments that recent develop-
ments may be getting monotonous following another double digit month, saying: “As Sonny Bono wrote 50 years ago in his famous, yet rather repetitive song: “the beat goes on, yes, the beat goes on”. It is not too difficult to imagine that quite a lot of people in our industry do not mind the monotony at all, after a number of years in the doldrums.” One development WorldACD says is noteworthy is Chinese growth slumped relative to previous months. Growth from China was down to eight per cent compared to the average rate of 19 per cent. WorldACD adds incoming traffic in China
continued to boom with 21 per cent growth. It says: “It grew faster than the world market every month, but not in July. Air cargo needed the compensation of high growth from places like Hong Kong, Germany, India, the United Kingdom, Singapore and the Netherlands, to achieve its July growth of 11.8 per cent YOY.” IATA shared the same view, reporting double digit growth for the fourth time in five months, with freight tonne kilometres increasing 11.4 per cent compared to July 2016. This is nearly four times the 10-year average growth rate of 3.1 per cent. The association thinks growth may be nearing a peak, and also says the results are consistent with an uptick in global trade, rising export orders and upbeat business confidence. IATA director general and chief executive officer, Alexandre de Juniac says: “July was a strong month for air cargo with double-digit growth. And for the third consecutive month demand for airfreight grew at a faster pace than demand for air travel.” “While the outlook for the rest of the year remains positive, there are signs that the cyclical growth period may be nearing a peak.” Capacity across the world also grew by 3.7 per cent in available freight tonne kilometres, and load factors improved by three percentage points to 43.7 per cent.
AirBridgeCargo Airlines (ABC) has further enhanced pharma services by gaining Envirotainer QEP accreditation at its global hub at Moscow Sheremetyevo International Airport and in Dallas. Envirotainer created its Qualified Envirotainer Provider Training and Quality Program (QEP) to recognise transport service providers which demonstrate their ability to properly manage Envirotainer container shipments in accordance with Good Distribution Practices. ABC global director of pharma, Fedor Novikov says: “We have been heavily involved in pharma transportation since 2016 and our focus over the last 18 months has been to invest in developing the products and services our customers need. QEP accreditation is one of the benchmarks we and our customers recognise
as being very important as we grow pharma volumes across our network.” The abcPharma product was developed in close consultation with customers by ABC’s pharma industry vertical team, which includes qualified staff at all levels. In November 2016 ABC became the first airline in Russia to receive IATA CEIV Pharma
certification, which addresses the need for more safety, security, compliance and efficiency through a globally consistent pharma product handling certification programme. Envirotainer compliance manager, Chris Fore says: “QEP accreditation sends a strong message about the high standards the airline is committed to delivering.”
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AirBridgeCargo Airlines gains Envirotainer QEP accreditation
ETHIOPIAN MERGES WITH AIRPORT JETTAINER PICKS NEW DIRECTOR OF OPERATIONS PREMIUM CARGO HELPS HACTL SOAR LEIPZIG KEEPS GROWING IN FIRST HALF OF 2017
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China to need 180 freighters by 2036 CHINA will need 180 new widebody freighter aircraft through to 2036, and the Asia Pacific region will require 320, Boeing predicts in its annual Current Market Outlook. Boeing says it projects demand for 7,240 new aircraft over the next 20 years valued at nearly $1.1 trillion, with the majority being single-aisle units, with 5,420 required at a value of $570 billion. Boeing Commercial Airplanes vice president of marketing, Randy Tinseth says: “China’s continuous economic growth, significant investment in infrastructure, growing middle-class and evolving airline business models support this long-term outlook.” He adds: “China’s fleet size is expected to grow at a pace well above the world average, and almost 20 per cent of global new airplane demand will be from airlines based in China.” The widebody fleet is expected to require 1,670 new aircraft as airlines shift to small and medium widebody units, while very large widebody aircraft will be reserved for the freighter market. The forecast predicts 4.7 per cent annual growth for air cargo in Asia Pacific, and carriers will need 320 new production freighters and 630 converted freighters.
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