TNT helps customers cut the carbon

TNT is offering CO2-neutral delivery of all express domestic consignments in Germany at no additional charge. The carrier measures how much CO2 is produced in transporting consignments and then ‘neutralises’ them with an equivalent amount of CO2 credits. TNT uses CO2 credits only from renewable energy projects that meet Gold Standard requirements. External auditor...

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Shanghai sets freight record

Shanghai Pudong International Airport has set a new cargo record, handling a total of 1.5m tonnes of freight in 2014, with growth of 16.15 per cent year-on-year. Shanghai Pudong International Airport Cargo Terminal Co Ltd. (PACTL) - a joint venture handling operation between Shanghai Airport, Lufthansa Cargo and JHJ Logistics Management – says its domestic cargo...

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China lifts price controls on 24 commodities, services

China will lift controls on prices of 24 commodities and services, said the National Development and Reform Commission on Sunday. Market will decide the price of tobacco leaves, the last agricultural product to be freed from government price control, but a minimum price will be set to protect farmers, said a statement on the commission website. Prices of railway bulk cargo, parcels and privately funded cargo and passenger transport will also be allowed to float. Railway passenger and cargo prices...

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French forwarders slam fuel surcharges

French freight forwarders have called on airlines to end separate fuel surcharges, which they argue are no longer relevant. TLF Overseas, the French freight forwarders organisation representing 95 per cent of general air cargo transactions, expressed its “incomprehension” of a situation that requires “more transparency and real positive economic signals from the carriers”. The strongly worded statement comes after Middle East airline Emirates SkyCargo last week confirmed that it is...

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Customs tips for the unwary shipper

Customs regulations can be a minefield for the unwary shipper, be it edible insects in Europe, chewing gum in Singapore and rubber gloves in the US. So parcels giant FedEx has come up with eight “surprising” Customs rules for small businesses setting out to conquer the world of exports. It was compiled by Harald Schoenfelder, managing director global trade services for FedEx Express Europe, Middle East, Indian Subcontinent and Africa. Says Schoenfelder: “We decided to compile some of the...

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The Year in Supply Chain 2014

 The economy underlying our supply chains started weak in the US and ended strong, with Q1 real GDP falling 2.1% - largely blamed on bad weather - and ending with signs of strength, with the latest estimate for Q3 GDP growth of a robust 5%. It does feel better economically right...

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Ethiopian Air cargo plane skids off runway at Ghana's Kotoka Airport

Ethiopian Air cargo plane skids off runway at Ghana's Kotoka Airport ACCRA, Jan. 10 (Xinhua) -- An Ethiopian Airlines cargo aircraft on Saturday skidded off the runway at the Kotoka International Airport (KIA) on landing, Ghanaian airport officials said. "All three crew people on board the aircraft survived the accident and are currently responding to treatment at the 37 Military Hospital," the Ghana Airport Company (GAC) said in a statement. The Boeing 737, ET-AQV (Ethiopian Airline...

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Thumbs up for Emirates' all-in freight rates

Shippers and forwarders have welcomed Emirates SkyCargo’s move to introduce an all-inclusive freight rate that does away with separate pricing components based on weight/volume plus fuel and security surcharges. “It is the best start to 2015 that I could imagine,” said Joost van Doesburg, airfreight policy manager with the European Shippers’...

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Demand for global air freight likely to rise by 4.5 pc in 2015

Demand for global air freight grew 4.2 per cent in November last year as compared to same period in 2013 and is expected to rise by 4.5 per cent this year, driven by growth in cross-border trade, International Air Transport Association (IATA) said. The most significant growth was recorded by carriers in the Asia-Pacific and Middle East regions at 5.9 per cent and 12.9 per cent respectively. Carriers in these regions captured the vast majority of the global increase (93 per cent). "More...

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US port chaos boosts ex-Asia Pacific air cargo revenues

Inbound US west coast container port congestion provided a November boost for transpacific air cargo revenues out of Asia to North America, although ex-US revenues fell. WorldACD’s latest monthly market data found that the transpacific was the best of the large markets in November. The Netherlands-based research house posed the question: “Did the problems in the...

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Sodexi opens Paris airport warehouse

Aéroports de Paris and Sodexi have opened a 7,600 sq m express freight warehouse at Paris-Charles de Gaulle (CDG) airport. The warehouse, with a €22m investment, will be used to manage and process flows of air freight and mail for express specialist Sodexi, which is 65 per cent  owned by Air France-KLM and 35 per cent by Geopost. Construction...

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AF-KLM adds combi flights to Dubai

Air France KLM Martinair Cargo will this month add three B747 Combi frequencies from Amsterdam Airport-Schiphol (AMS) to and from Dubai International Airport (DXB). Starting 10 January,  the European carrier says that the upgrade offers “increased flexibility to carry main deck commodities to our hubs, Dubai International...

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Kerry Logistics boosts network

Asia-based Kerry Logistics has bought a controlling stake in Dubai’s Able Logistics Group and a majority stake in the sea and air arms of Canada’s Total Logistics Partner (TLP). Able Logistics is an international freight forwarder with offices across UAE, Saudi Arabia, Oman and China. Total Logistics Partner Ocean Consolidators and Total Logistics Partner Air Express are two freight forwarding companies focused on the Asia-Canada trade. The acquisition has added Montreal and Toronto to...

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Cologne cargo up 2% in 2014

Cologne Bonn Airport saw record air cargo growth in 2014, handling 753,000 tonnes, a two per cent increase on 2013. The German airport handled 9.5m passengers in 2014 – a “significant rise” over prior year. “2014 has exceeded our expectations. We have developed better than the German passenger market, partially with growth rates above five per cent,” says Michael...

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Indian air cargo export surge hit by US$ yield decline

India’s booming air cargo market has registered a 13.5 per cent surge in outgoing volumes since 2011, although coupled with a “dismal yield” fall of 20 per cent in US$, says research house WorldACD. The Netherlands-based consultancy, which uses primary data from the airlines themselves, said that India’s yield change looked a lot better...

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