DHL’s latest Airfreight report suggests soaring inflation is likely to see reduced purchasing power and demand for air freight going into 2023. The monthly report details the latest developments of the global air freight market and is undertaken by DHL Global Forwarding. It shows that lower sales and high inventory are common across most sectors, with retail and manufacturing the most affected. This, it says, is encouraging shippers to use ocean options where possible to limit inventory and reduce freight costs. DHL points out that in pre-pandemic times Q4 would typically see a “burgeoning surge of air cargo demand and rates due to the approaching holiday season”. But it says that air freight volumes in October showed “almost no signs of a fourth-quarter cargo surge”. It concludes that the belief that this year would see the normalisation of trading patterns after two years of Covid-19 “premature”. DHL says that underpinning this dampening of demand is the current global average inflation rate of around 9%.

American Airlines Cargo is hoping to benefit from the addition of two new origins to its transatlantic winter network. The carrier, during this year’s winter season, will be able to offer direct capacity from 11 European cities and 11 US destinations – two more than last year – with 35 daily flights. The additional US locations compared with last year are Phoenix (PHX) and Raleigh-Durham (RDU). The airline is currently providing daily service from London Heathrow Airport (LHR) to 11 US destinations on a mix of Boeing widebody aircraft, including the 777-200, 777-300 and 787-9. US destinations are Boston Logan International (BOS), Charlotte Douglas International (CLT), Dallas/Fort Worth International (DFW), New York JFK (JFK), Los Angeles International (LAX), Miami International (MIA), Chicago O’Hare International (ORD), Philadelphia International (PHL), PHX, RDU and Seattle-Tacoma International (SEA).

International air cargo demand declined considerably in October, said the Association of Asia Pacific Airlines (AAPA). The association said October’s preliminary traffic figures for Asia Pacific airlines show international air cargo demand declined by 13.9% year on year in freight tonne km (FTK) terms, amid a downturn in export markets for intermediate goods. Offered freight capacity fell marginally, by 1.2% year on year, leading to a 9.6 percentage point fall in the average international freight load factor to 64.7%. Meanwhile, Asia Pacific airlines carried a combined total of 12.1m international passengers in October, an eight-fold increase compared to the 1.4m in the same month last years. Overall, passenger traffic volumes reached 38.6% of pre-pandemic levels. AAPA director general Subhas Menon said air cargo faced “multiple headwinds”. He said, “Declining business confidence, against a backdrop of rising risks to the global economy, led to a slowing in orders for manufactured goods, in turn driving a 5.5% year-on-year decline in air cargo demand for the first ten months of the year.” He added that “the region’s airlines are facing a challenging operating environment, as a result of high fuel prices, weak local currencies and manpower shortages”.

Government is open to ease rules to help Indian airlines boost capacity amid supply chain disruptions that have delayed deliveries of aircraft, engines, and other parts, said Union civil aviation minister Jyotiraditya Scindia, at an event recently. The government is now open to approve a wet lease on an aircraft for a year from the current six months, the minister added saying the measures are being implemented as an exception and will be approved on a case-by-case basis. Scindia also said he expects the relaunch of Jet Airways next year. The airline is due for an important NCLT hearing on 29 November, said reports.

DSV has become the first company to purchase Etihad Cargo sustainable aviation fuel (SAF) to offset the carbon emissions of a flight. Etihad Cargo transported DSV’s cargo shipment from Washington Dulles to Abu Dhabi on Etihad’s first transatlantic NetZero flight on November 13. The B787 flight also utilised contrail prevention technology from Satavia to manage carbon emissions and non-CO2 climate effects from contrails which cause surface warming and are responsible for up to two-thirds of aviation’s climate impact. Martin Drew, senior vice president – global sales & cargo at Etihad Aviation Group, said: “Etihad Cargo is witnessing more focus on sustainable air cargo from customers who are seeking to establish partnerships that provide SAF utilisation, carbon offset initiatives and management of non-CO2 climate impact. “Etihad Cargo’s partnership with DSV to transport cargo utilising the SAF book and claim system has showcased the power of collaboration and demonstrated the future of net-zero aviation. “The successful delivery of DSV’s shipment has proved net-zero air cargo operations are possible and is the first step in transforming the possible into the routine.” Etihad said its investment in SAF is part of efforts to improve its sustainability profile. The airline is also the first Middle Eastern carrier to join TIACA’s BlueSky verification programme and has pledged to achieve net zero carbon emissions by 2050.

Saudi Arabia has announced plans to transform Riyadh Airport into a six-runway airport and logistics hub that will have capacity to handle 3.5m tons of cargo by 2050. It will include 12 sq km of airport support facilities, residential and recreational facilities, retail outlets, and other logistics real estate. The development aims to boost Riyadh’s position as a global logistics hub, stimulate transport, trade and tourism, and act as a bridge linking the east with the west. The project is in line with Saudi Arabia’s vision to transform Riyadh to be among the top ten city economies in the world and to support the growth of the city’s population to 15–20m people by 2030. “The airport aims to accommodate up to 120 million travellers by 2030 and 185 million travellers, with the capacity to process 3.5 million tons of cargo, by 2050,” a press release stated. The airport will be built by the country’s sovereign wealth fund, The Public Investment Fund (PIF). The announcement comes as part of PIF’s target of investing in the capabilities of promising sectors to enhance Saudi Arabia’s efforts in diversifying the economy. “The new airport is expected to contribute SR27bn annually to non-oil GDP and to create 103,000 direct and indirect jobs, in line with Vision 2030 objectives,” the press release said.

Celcius Logistics announced the launch of its Hyper-Local temperature-controlled delivery services for food and pharma orders, as part of its last mile solution. Celcius aims to expand to 9 metros, including Mumbai, Delhi, Kolkata, Bangalore, Hyderabad, Lucknow, Jaipur, Gwalior and Amritsar, with 200 riders, within 3 months of the launch. The brand has currently tied up with Zomato and is the partner of choice for temperature-controlled deliveries across varies cities for their inter-city orders. In the long run, Celcius also aims to cater to fruits and vegetable suppliers, direct-to-home services, pharma products and intermediary distributors, vaccine distributors as well as cloud kitchens, canned food companies, dairy and meat distributors, among others, who would need temperature-controlled deliveries to be made for quantities ranging from 500gms to 5Kgs. Celcius Logistics is the first of its kind cold-chain online marketplace that offers an integrated smart platform for all stakeholders to explore, book, monitor and process their cold supply chain needs, with utmost efficiency and transparency. With their hyperlocal service, Celcius is the first to ensure perfect quality of materials being transported through real-time tracking of temperature at every point.

DHL Express has strengthened its network in the Delhi-NCR region with the expansion of Faridabad service center. Inaugurated by John Pearson, CEO, DHL Express, this is DHL Express India’s eighth service center in Delhi/NCR region and 53rd in the country. The sustained expansion is in line with the company’s commitment of EUR250 million towards infrastructure development across the country. DHL Express has been serving customers in Faridabad since 2014. The company has now expanded its Faridabad service center into a 9000-square-feet facility to meet the significant trade volume growth in the last five years. This augments DHL Express’ current service offering to customers, as it meets the growing export and import demands. John Pearson, CEO of DHL Express, commented on the expansion: “Even in these volatile times, our well-connected global network, focus on infrastructure, and dedicated people have paved the way for our growth. Our recently released DHL Trade Growth Atlas tells us that India is on track to more than double its trade volume growth rate in the next five years, and we are uniquely positioned to support this because of our unrivalled expertise. Investments like these in the country will allow us to provide best-in-class service to our customers and make us a reliable partner.” R.S Subramanian, SVP South Asia, DHL Express said: “We are committed to supporting India’s economic growth and facilitating international trade. To meet this commitment, we have invested heavily in people, processes, and infrastructure across the country in recent years. The Faridabad service center expansion is part of the growth strategy. The region has seen a 70% increase in shipment volume over the last three years, necessitating infrastructure expansion to meet rising demand. We …

India will soon have its own logistics cost index (LCI) that will provide granular data expected to help investors and policymakers formulate projects and interventions in order to improve efficiency. According to officials in the Department for Promotion of Industry and Internal Trade (DPIIT), work on putting a framework for devising a logistics cost index is in the final stages and set for release very soon. Under the initiative, multiple indexed data will be provided to capture product-wise as well as region-wide logistics cost movement on a forthrightly or monthly basis on the lines of WPI and CPI, said official reports. In addition to the logistics cost index, an annual, all-encompassing, national logistics cost data based on Indian systems will also be brought out by DPIIT to provide a truer picture of costs involved in moving goods and services across the country.

MSC Mediterranean Shipping (MSC) has launched its air cargo operations with first Boeing 777 freighter with Atlas Air as its operating partner. Atlas Air will operate the freighter on behalf of MSC. “We are delighted to see the first of our MSC-branded aircraft take to the skies and we are looking forward to start serving the market with our new air cargo solution,” said Jannie Davel, vice-president of air cargo at MSC in an official statement. “We believe that MSC Air Cargo is developing from a solid foundation thanks to the reliable ongoing support of our operating partner Atlas.” The aircraft was delivered as part of a long-term aircraft, crew, maintenance and insurance agreement between the Purchase, New York-based Atlas and MSC, which is headquartered in Geneva, Switzerland. It is the first of four new 777-200Fs that Atlas will operate for MSC, which is eyeing an expansion into the booming post-pandemic air cargo market driven largely by high ocean shipping rates and the broad shift to online shopping,” Davel added.