Cathay shrinks cargo fleet
Cathay has now unveiled plans to shrink from 25 freighters at the end of this year to 20 by 2016. No greater illustration is needed of the declining role of freighters in air cargo.
What makes the example of Cathay so interesting is that, with the possible exception of Gulf carriers like Emirates, surely no operator is better placed to profit from whatever air cargo growth might be available.
Air Freight Cargo Markey
Its base is the world’s largest air cargo hub – and on its doorstep is the world’s most important and dynamic air cargo market.
Cathay Pacific expands in Hong Kong
The $720 million Cathay Pacific Cargo Terminal at Hong Kong International Airport, which began operations in February last year and became fully operational in October, has been opened.
A wholly-owned subsidiary of Cathay Pacific Airways Limited, Cathay Pacific Services Limited (CPSL) held the grand opening on Monday 17 February.
Cathay Pacific Airways chief executive John Slosar managed the event, whilst the chief executive of the Hong Kong special administrative region the Honourable Leung Chun-ying was the guest of honour.
Most container cargo losses caused by bad packing
Accidental Shipping Losses
Analysis by specialist transport and logistics insurer TT Club has revealed that as many as two thirds of accidents that involve the loss of, or damage to, containerised cargo are thought to be caused by poor or improper packing and securing.
Such a finding is echoed by the ocean carriers’ Cargo Incident Notification System (CINS), where a third of incidents investigated were found to have this cause. The loss to the industry is substantial,
Hong Kong port shrinks whilst Shenzhen port grows
Hong Kong, which is on course to lose its status as the world’s third-busiest container port, handled 22.3m teu (20 foot equivilant shipping container) in 2013, 3.6% less than a year ago, according to government data, dipping 2% to 17.1m teu.
Hong Kong is set to be overtaken by neighbouring Shenzhen as the world’s third-largest container port, a status that it has held since 2007.
The former British colony was once the world’s top container port but was outrun by Singapore in 2005 and by Shanghai in 2007.
Liner shipping at a crossroads?
Container shipping lines should brace themselves for up to three years of significant overcapacity and falling freight rates. At least that was the consensus thinking of analysts and industry experts at the Intermodal Europe conference held in Hamburg last month.
There was also talk of a possible new orders taking shape as Maersk Line, CMA CGM and MSC finalise details of their planned P3 alliance which would only serve to further increase overcapacity in the longer term.
A CMA CGM vessel sailing from Le Havre to Port Said has lost 14 containers overboard in strong winds and large swells.
A CMA CGM vessel sailing from Le Havre has lost 14 containers overboard in strong winds and large swells.
The 5,700 teu
AIR CARGO markets surged last November rising 6.1 per cent
Although November is typically a strong month, airfreight volumes rose steadily (up on October’s 4.4 per cent growth) even after accounting for seasonal impacts, a statement reads.
The increase in air cargo freight tonne kilometres (FTKs) in November (and recent past months) is consistent with an improving business environment.
Asia Pacific was a key component in the overall result. The jump in demand among the region’s carriers, which accounts for some 40 per cent of the global market,
Recovery begins – At last !
At a global level, based on trade data available in mid-November (including from the US, China and Brazil), container volumes can be expected to grow by 5% in 2014 compared with a year earlier.
This is consistent with the traffic reported by the major lines, thanks largely to information available in the first nine months of the year. The underlying global volume for the third quarter of 2013 was 25% above the level of five years earlier,
The marine terminals at New York/New Jersey will be closed today as a massive winter storm pounds the Northeast.
The National Weather Service has reported that 21 inches of snow has fallen just North of Boston, with parts of Upstate New York having 18 inches.