Newsletter – February 22, 2024

AIR FREIGHT UPDATES

Shein, Temu and other e-commerce retailers are upending global air cargo industry
cbc.ca
The rapid rise of fast-fashion e-commerce retailers such as Shein and Temu is upending the global air cargo industry, as they increasingly vie for limited air-cargo space to woo consumers with rapid delivery times, industry sources say.
Shein, PDD Group’s Temu and ByteDance’s TikTok Shop, which recently launched online shopping in the U.S., ship the majority of their products directly from factories in China to shoppers by air in individually addressed packages. Read more here.

Post-Pandemic Shift: London Heathrow Airport Reports 1st Profit Since 2019
simpleflying.com
London’s Heathrow Airport (LHR) released its yearly figures for 2023, reporting a profit for the first time since 2019. The news comes as most international hubs release their year-end figures in February, and LHR was among the busiest and highest rated, according to a statement from the airport.
In total, the profit before tax was equivalent to £38 million ($48 million), according to the statement. The £38 million was earned by serving more than 79.2 million passengers, spanning over 45,089 aircraft flights. Heathrow added in the statement that it hopes to break its all-time passenger record in 2024 with 81.4 million. Read more here.

Amazon closes US airfreight facility
aircargonews.net
Amazon Air is closing its airfreight facility at Kelly Field Airport, San Antonio, Texas, in a move that is set to affect ground handler employees at Worldwide Flight Services.
E-commerce giant Amazon did not state why it is closing the facility at the joint-use airport, however, it told Air Cargo News that supply chain operations would not be affected. Read more here.

OCEAN FREIGHT UPDATES

Carriers still desperate for tonnage to guarantee emergency schedules
theloadstar.com
Ocean carriers are struggling to maintain weekly sailings from Asia to Europe via the Cape of Good Hope routing, despite the delivery of some 425,000 teu of newbuild capacity this year.
According to an analysis by Alphaliner, the extended voyages are proving a challenge for carriers endeavouring to keep to revised proforma schedules. Read more here (login required).

Unexpected bonus for NOOs as demand for charters increases
theloadstar.com
The Red Sea crisis has provided non-operating containership owners (NOOs) with a significant boost to their earnings.
Re-routing liner services around the Cape of Good Hope has increased demand for chartered tonnage, and reversed the declining trend in time-charter rates and periods. Read more here (login required).

West Coast leads latest surge in US container imports
freigthwaves.com
The start of 2024 is bringing with it significant growth in volumes at top U.S. ports.
January witnessed a 9.2% year-over-year increase in inbound containers. This rise represents the latest reading in four consecutive months of growth, a beacon of positive momentum after a challenging period dominated by the post-pandemic downturn. Read more here.

CANADA BUSINESS – GOVERNMENT UPDATES

‘A lot to like’: Economists react to Canada’s inflation data
bnnbloomberg.ca
Less than a month after calling Canada’s inflation numbers “unfavourable” and “disappointing,” economists are singing a much different tune this time around.
On Tuesday, Statistics Canada reported inflation fell to 2.9 per cent in January, down from 3.4 per cent in December and well below economists’ forecast for the month. When looking deeper into the data, each of Canada’s underlying inflation numbers fell as well. Read more here.