Hong Kong Airlines Under Pressure to Improve Financial Situation or Lose License

Hong kong Air Transport Licensing Authority(ATLA) has informed Hong Kong Airlines(HKA) to either improve there financial situation or loose license .

Early this week ATLA has informed HKA to inject cash to improve there financial situation which is deteriorating day by day else face action & loose there license to operate.

ATLA has provided deadline of 07-Dec to prove cash input else cash stripped HKA will have to lose its operating license.

However airlines has blamed recent unrest in Hong kong . They are also no able to distribute salary to there staff for November month thereby delaying payments by first week of December.

Due to mounting financial issue airlines has restricted its network thereby focusing on its core sector only. 

Continue

Heathrow Airport now with automated trucking updates..

Heathrow airport is now facilitated with automated trucking updates whenever a cargo is loaded or unloaded in shed .

Its ground handling agents Dnata & ASC can now directly update agents & hauliers to there system / online portal whenever they are delivering or collecting cargo .

General users & regular users can access these updates by small modifications in there AIS .

Continue

Tonnage up but rates to shrink in 2015 says IATA

Senior cargo executives at IATA member airlines are predicting that global air freight tonnage will increase next year at its fastest rate since 2010. Yet rates are likely to shrink by a further 5.8 per cent in real terms, intensifying pressure on margins.
Brian Pearce, IATA chief economist, told a media briefing in Geneva that volume measured by freight tonne-kilometres has continued its steady recovery this year. The October figure of almost 14.5bn FTKs surpassed the industry’s all-time peak achieved four years ago.
“We’re seeing growth after a challenging time but we’re facing significant challenges,” Pearce said. IATA heads of cargo foresee a 4.3 per cent increase in volumes to 53.5m tonnes, slightly ahead of this year’s growth rate, but expect further yield erosion.
Air freight yields are now 20 per cent below their 2010 levels, reflecting continued weakness in load factors, and are declining again after some evidence of rate stabilisation mid-year. Pearce said growth in word trade was “half hearted” and business confidence had flat-lined.
Meanwhile, changes in manufacturing patterns could impact on international freight flows. “We are seeing some on-shoring of production for good economic reasons. China has seen a doubling of labour costs in the last 10 years while US energy prices have halved, leading to a renaissance of manufacturing in the US,” he commented.
Pearce also warned of the risks of protectionism, occurring via subtle procurement changes as well as traditional tariff mechanisms. Governments were concerned about protecting jobs at home, but their action risked “shrinking international trade and economic growth for everyone,” he said.
Air’s share of the overall freight market, which fell by 1.5 per cent annually over the first decade of this century, had stabilised since 2012 and air was “becoming more attractive again compared with other modes,” Pearce insisted.
However, the 40 per cent fall in oil prices since mid-2014, while in principle helping airlines control their costs, would not produce an immediate benefit as they would have hedged at least half their fuel requirements at rates north of $90 per barrel.    
“The success of their passenger colleagues also challenges cargo departments,” Pearce said. Load factor had stopped falling and freighter utilisation was increasing, underlining the industry’s ability to matching supply to demand, but he stressed that “lots of new capacity is coming online”.
IATA estimates that aircraft deliveries will increase by six per cent in 2015, putting pressure back on utilisation.

Source :http://www.aircargonews.net/news/single-view/news/tonnage-up-but-rates-to-shrink-in-2015-says-iata.html

Continue

IATA figures find fair weather for freight flow

IATA’s November Airlines Financial Monitor finds good news for much of the air cargo sector as freight volumes continue to expand steadily and load factors improve on the back of growth in demand.
Air freight volumes increased in October compared to September, with recent improvements driven by progress in Asia Pacific and North America due to expanding trade volumes, bouncing back after weaker performance earlier in 2014.
Asia Pacific’s improvements were blunted somewhat as Chinese carriers were hit by a depreciating local currency, leading to a combination of weakness in cargo revenues as well as rising cost pressures.

Source : http://www.aircargonews.net/news/single-view/news/iata-figures-find-fair-weather-for-freight-flow.html

Continue

Apple’s iPhone 6 boosts Asia-Pacific cargo numbers

SHIPMENTS of the iPhone 6 helped boost air-cargo figures in the Asia-Pacific in September, ­resulting in regional growth beating the global average.

But aviation officials warn the improvement in global business confidence has stagnated and this could hit air cargo.

Asia-Pacific carriers emerged from a first-quarter slowdown to post a 5.7 per cent increase in cargo traffic compared to a global average of 5.2 per cent.

The International Air Transport Association said the region was benefiting from a rebound in trade activity that included ­increased air-freight shipments from China. Capacity rose 5.6 per cent, leaving load factors relatively flat. The 5.2 per cent rise in global freight tonne kilometres was 0.8 percentage points ahead of the 4.4 per cent average growth in demand for the year so far.

“Although the overall growth rate continues the positive trend of recent months, regional variations are significant,” IATA said.

“Airlines in Asia-Pacific, North America, Middle East and Africa all posted strong growth figures (between 5 per cent and 17 per cent above the previous year’s levels).

“European airlines, however, saw a decline of 1.6 per cent compared to September 2013 and Latin American airlines reported little difference from 2013 with growth of just 0.3 per cent.”

IATA director general Tony Tyler said the European decline was “a worrying trend” reflecting general uncertainty in the European economy amplified by sanctions against Russia.

“Overall, improvements in ­global business confidence have stagnated, which could mean a bumpy road ahead,” Mr Tyler said.

The IATA director was more upbeat about global passenger growth, which rose 5.3 per cent in September as load factors inched ahead to 80.3 per cent.

Asia-Pacific airlines were up 4.8 per cent on a year ago.

This was a weaker rise than August, but IATA said the trend was positive and reflected better demand conditions in the region, including stronger trade activity. European growth slowed to 3.9 per cent, but was hit by a 14-day Air France strike and weakness in the eurozone economy.

Load factors on European carriers hit 84.7 per cent, the highest for any region and a 1 percentage point rise on last year. North America recorded the second lowest demand rise of 2.1 per cent while Middle East carriers were the highest at 15.8 per cent.

Africa brought up the rear with growth of just 1.8 per cent compared to last year, down significantly on the August year-on-year growth of 7 per cent.

IATA cautioned this could not be necessarily interpreted as a result of the Ebola epidemic, due to the region’s volatility.

Continue

Air Cargo World - IATA shows robust growth in August air cargo FTKs

Global air freight markets showed continued robust growth in air cargo volumes in August, according to the latest data from The International Air Transport Association (IATA). Measured by freight-tonne-kilometers (FTKs), volumes rose 5.1% in August 2014, compared to August 2013, while capacity grew at a slower pace of 3.4% from the previous year. This is the second consecutive strong month for cargo volumes, following the 6.1% year-on-year rise recorded in July.
“The outlook for air cargo is clearly getting better. However, there are some limiting factors on the extent of potential gains. Demand for air cargo is growing more slowly than global economic activity,” said Tony Tyler, IATA’s director general and CEO. “Businesses are reported to have more confidence in the future, but the list of political and economic risks continues to moderate how that confidence translates into actual activity.”
Carriers in all regions reported an expansion in volumes. African airlines led the pack with the strongest growth of air cargo demand – 9.2% year-on-year – with capacity growth of 4.2%. Although this is the second consecutive month of strong growth, the volatility of African data, coupled with the slowdown in key African economies such as South Africa, IATA said it is too soon to understand the extent to which this represents a real and sustainable acceleration.
Middle Eastern carriers enjoyed cargo growth of 7.8%, although the pace was a little below the year-to-date average of 9.6%. The Middle East continues to expand strongly on its growing links to developing markets, as well as diversifying into important commodities such as perishables. Capacity was up 6.0%.
Asia Pacific carriers grew 6.3% and capacity expanded by 4.4%, continuing the acceleration of recent months. Emerging Asia trade volumes have expanded volumes solidly in June and July. A notable rise in Chinese export orders bodes well for future demand growth, IATA said.
North American carriers increased air freight volumes by a solid 5.5% compared to a year ago. A rebound in business activity following the weakness in the first quarter and positive underlying economic growth trends should support stronger growth in the coming months, IATA said. Capacity, however, fell slightly, by 0.4%.
European airlines grew by just 1.4%, while capacity expanded by 4.8%. Economic activity within the Eurozone continues to deteriorate, IATA noted, although the latest data does show a moderate pick-up in imports and exports. EU sanctions as a result of the Russia-Ukraine crisis also continue to affect demand, the group added.
Latin American airlines saw air cargo grow by a sluggish 1.1%, compared to August 2013, while capacity rose sharply to 7.6%. The weakness in Latin American freight volumes reflects declines in regional trade activity and the anemic performance of the Brazilian economy, IATA concluded.

Source : http://www.wcainterglobal.com/eng/news.asp?id=951

Continue

Air Freight Volumes Show Solid Gains

 
Air freight volumes continue to show solid gains on a year ago, supported by economic improvements in some regions, says IATA in its latest quarterly cargo chartbook.
But high jet fuel prices and overall weakness in yields have kept cargo financial performance from improving so far this year, adds IATA.
“Emerging Asia trade volumes have rebounded after weakness in Q1 and consumers in the US are more optimistic. These developments have supported growth in demand for airfreighted commodities like semi-conductors,” says the report.
It continues: “However, in Europe consumer confidence and trade activity have weakened due to the Russia-Ukraine crisis. Business confidence continues to point to expansion, but rates of improvements are still weaker than 2013 year-end.”
And although jet fuel prices have eased slightly, they remain high at about $120/bb, the chartbook, adds: “On the positive side, although yields remain weak, overall they appear to be stabilizing and are up slightly on a year ago.
“This could help reduce downward pressure on cargo financial performance in months ahead. Consistent with more supportive demand conditions in some regions, cargo heads surveyed in July expect growth in traffic and yields to pick-up during the year ahead.”

Source : http://www.aircargonews.net/news/single-view/news/air-freight-volumes-show-solid-gains.html

Continue