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Global air freight demand up 9.8 percent

admin — Fri, 03 Feb 2017 01:03:49 +0000

Global air freight demand ended 2016 with strong December growth of 9.8 percent, the International Air Transport Association (IATA) said on Wednesday but warned that protectionist measures could hamper world trade.

“In terms of demand, 2016 was a good year for air cargo. That was boosted by solid year-end performance. Looking ahead, strong export orders are good news. But there are headwinds. The most significant is stagnant world trade which also faces the risk of protectionist measures,” said IATA Director General and CEO Alexandre de Juniac.

December demand in Europe rose 16.4 percent and in Africa it grew by 13.6 percent.

Full-year demand rose 3.8 percent with gains in all regions except Latin America.

Available capacity rose by 3.2 percent in December, IATA said.

Source: https://www.reuters.com/article/us-airlines-iata-freight-idUSKBN15G44P

Saudi Arabia Robust Growth in Freight

admin — Wed, 01 Feb 2017 22:39:13 +0000

The global market of logistics & warehousing services in Saudi Arabia has shown a robust growth over the past few years owing to the increasing globalization and expanding retail & FMCG market. Also, the rising e-tail market worldwide has also positively impacted the market size of logistics industry. The companies operating in e-commerce sector requires warehouses and logistic partners in every country of the world in which they are operating.

Rising government support in all the countries to improve trade relations with other countries, improving infrastructure (roadways, railways, airports and seaports), modern technologies, increasing number of logistics and warehousing service providers has driven the size of the industry.
Asia pacific has majorly contributed to the revenues of the global logistics & warehousing market. The demand for logistics and warehousing services in emerging economies in the region such as Pakistan, India, China, Singapore and others has accelerated owing to the expanding industrial activities and government support in these countries. China is the major contributor to the growth in this region due to the presence of a large manufacturing base. Saudi Arabia logistics market has shown an impressive growth rate in 2015 owing to the expanding manufacturing & retail sector, rising expatriate population, growing number of foreign companies and increasing value of exports and imports in the country

Saudi Arabia

Saudi Arabia has established itself as a leading country in logistics & Warehousing Industry under the GCC region. The kingdom is one of the fastest growing countries in the logistics and warehousing industry at the global level.
Logistic services in the country have been successful in connecting different export and import markets of various countries across the world. Furthermore, over the past five years, billions of dollars have been invested by the government of Saudi Arabia towards development of logistics infrastructure. Saudi Arabia has been the foremost nation in the Middle East to focus on logistics.
The freight forwarding sector is the leading segment towards the revenues of the logistics and warehousing industry.
Saudi Arabia logistics & Warehousing industry has number of leading players in the organized market such as DHL, DB Schenker, Aramex, Panalpina, UPS, TNT , Fed Ex and others. The market in the country is majorly driven by e-commerce industry and rising trade volumes in the country.
The rising demand of cold chain logistics in the country due to the increase in the consumption of meat & animal food has triggered the size of the logistics industry. The warehouses and fleet required for transportation of cold chain products are costlier than the logistics requirement for other products.
For more information on the market research report please refer to the below link:
https://www.kenresearch.com/automotive-transportation-and-warehousing/logistics-and-shipping/saudi-arabia-logistics-market-report/77655-100.html

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Alibaba CEO Jack Ma eyes Pakistan for investment?

admin — Tue, 24 Jan 2017 17:18:10 +0000

Chairman of Alibaba Group, Jack Ma met with Pakistani Prime Minister (PM) Nawaz Sharif on Wednesday and expressed deep interest in investment in Pakistan.

The meeting came on the sidelines of the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland.

Jack Ma said that the conglomerate was monitoring Pakistan’s economic growth and e-commerce sector.

Jack Ma said that the giant wants to support small-scale industries in developing countries. He also informed the Pakistani premier that the Alibaba Group has been facilitating 60 million companies across the globe. Whilst talking about the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC), he added that the historic investment would promote bilateral ties between the two states.

Ma invited the Pakistani Prime Minister to visit Mr Ma’s headquarters in Guangzhou, China for further discussions.

Alibaba

Alibaba is China’s dominant player in online commerce, with its Taobao platform estimated to hold more than 90 per cent of the consumer-to-consumer market, and its Tmall platform is believed to have over half of business-to-consumer transactions.

On January 17, Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of eBay, Devin Wenig had branded emerging markets of the world the fastest growing of all in the e-commerce sector. The statement came in response to a question regarding Pakistan.

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UK LOSING MILLIONS IN VAT

admin — Sun, 22 Jan 2017 20:33:10 +0000

UK losing millions in VAT from non-EU sellers on Amazon and eBay

Both firms say they have no obligation to police VAT compliance by sellers as Brussels warns of huge rise in goods shipped with value under-declared

The UK is expected to lose tens of millions of pounds in VAT avoidance and evasion this Christmas as a growing number of non-EU sellers, including hundreds from China, increasingly dominate sales of popular gifts on Amazon and eBay.

“There has been a huge increase in this trade which is very difficult to control,” a senior Brussels source told the Guardian. “The system is so complicated it’s open to abuse.”

Customs officers are aware that some overseas sellers are under-declaring the value of goods shipped to the UK and other European destinations in order to qualify for VAT exemptions on low-value packages.

“You’re getting packages which the [online] customer might have paid €100 [£70] for. And they’re coming in [through customs] identified as €20, or as gifts. And that’s the abuse,” said the source, who has close knowledge of the subject. This deception benefits the seller because lower-value goods – less than €22 in most EU member states and £15 in the UK – are exempt from VAT.

Growing numbers of businesses from China are using Chinese-run warehouses in UK port cities as staging posts, allowing them to offer eBay and Amazon shoppers rapid delivery as well as competitive prices.

In many instances, sellers are not disclosing VAT numbers in their eBay and Amazon listings. When asked by a customer for a VAT receipt, several have simply replied that they do not apply the tax.

All overseas businesses selling on eBay and Amazon must apply VAT on their UK sales from the moment they start selling to customers in Britain, regardless of how low their turnover is in the UK.

VAT can be avoided only if items are sold from outside the EU, are genuinely low-value and are imported in small packages already addressed to individual consumers.

The Guardian has seen evidence of Chinese sellers on eBay giving invalid VAT numbers as well as sharing, or cloning, numbers belonging to other businesses, all of which suggests there may be serious compliance failures or fraud.

Evidence was shown to eBay, which said cases highlighted by the Guardian would be discussed with HM Revenue & Customs.

“eBay reminds all its users of their need to comply with their legal obligations and we also provide helpful guidance on VAT through our policies and help pages,” the company said. “If eBay sellers are found to be breaching UK VAT compliance rules, we will cooperate with HMRC in all cases where HMRC provides evidence of underpayment of taxes.”

Amazon said sellers on its site were “independent businesses responsible for complying with their own VAT obligations”. It added: “We don’t have the authority to review their tax affairs.”

Amazon argued that sellers using its site were not required to post their business details or VAT numbers on Amazon.co.uk. Instead they can meet EU seller disclosure rules by making the information available in an email to customers or in a paper invoice delivered with goods bought.

Brussels sources disagreed, insisting EU rules required that customers be informed of seller details before making a purchase. “In practice, for sales via online marketplaces, the information must be provided on the website,” one source said.

Both eBay and Amazon said they had no obligation to police VAT compliance by sellers using their sites, and no liability in cases in which sellers are found to have committed VAT fraud.

Richard Allen of Ravas, a tax fairness campaign group which represents UK small traders, said: “The systematic abuse of the VAT system results in damaging price distortions that drive legitimate UK businesses to the wall, and workers out of their jobs.” His members have spent months cataloguing evidence of suspected VAT abuses and have passed on their findings to senior Whitehall and Brussels officials.

Brussels sources told the Guardian that out-of-date VAT rules were too complex and ill-suited to the internet age. An overhaul including the removal of low-value exemption is planned, but it will be years before some changes come into force.

About a dozen member states are understood to have informally clubbed together to explore interim measures they can take to cope with the rapid rise of non-EU sellers, many offering VAT-free prices.

British customs officers have tried to increase scrutiny of small package imports in the last year, but they are under pressure to prioritise the monitoring of imports for terrorism threats, drugs and counterfeit goods.

READ FULL ARTICLE here: https://www.theguardian.com/business/2015/nov/01/uk-losing-millions-vat-non-eu-sellers-amazon-ebay

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PHTHALATE IN IMPORTED TOYS?

admin — Tue, 13 Dec 2016 20:56:00 +0000

Parents are being warned to be on their guard against counterfeit toys this Christmas after tests revealed some contained harmful levels of chemicals.

The fake Maleficent Disney figures, seized by trading standards officers, are the latest in a long line of counterfeit products found to contain high quantities of phthalates.

Meanwhile, a report published this week has found that £174 million is lost to counterfeit toys and games each year in the UK alone.

Several other cheap imports and counterfeit products – such as dolls, swimming goggles, fancy dress make up, false nails and loom bands – have been seized or recalled because of unacceptable levels of the substance.

If ingested when a toy is chewed the chemical, used to soften plastics, can lead to an increased risk of cancer, asthma and fertility problems in later life.

Robert Chantry-Price, a lead officer for product safety at the Chartered Trading Standards Institute, said:

“It is frightening to think that large quantities of phthalates are still being used in children’s toys, especially when it can cause such serious long term consequences to a person’s health.

“Phthalates are carcinogenic, mutagenic and can cause reproductive problems but, despite legislation to the contrary, significant amounts of these substances can be found in a wide range of toys and child care products.

“If these toys fall into the hands of very young children or babies, it’s more likely they will chew on the plastic and consume the chemicals.

“Trading standards services are continuously working to tackle the issue but it is vital consumers remain vigilant too.

“Parents should be cautious when buying toys this Christmas and not fall for the first deal they see.

“Make sure to buy from reputable shops, beware of products that are drastically cheaper and look at the packaging for the distributor’s details and a CE mark.

The National Trading Standards Safety at Ports and Borders Teams prevented 2,582,692 unsafe and non-compliant items from entering the market in 2014/15, a total value of £79,546,900. This included items such as phone chargers, toys, beauty products and mechanical equipment.

The Maleficent toys, seized by Warwickshire trading standards earlier this month, were found to contain 18 times the legal limit of phthalates.

In January, fake ‘Frozen’ dolls were found to contain phthalates, with thousands of the Disney toys seized from shops in Pontefract and West Yorkshire.

In addition, last year cheap imports of plastic charms from loom bands sets were found to be 50 per cent over the legal limit of phthalates.

The use of phthalates is tightly restricted from use in toys across Europe and toy manufacturers and products must contain no more than 0.1 per cent.

The Office for Harmonization in the Internal Market report found that the EU toy industry loses €1.4 billion a year to counterfeit goods.

Link to article: https://apps.tradingstandards.uk/extra/news-item.cfm/newsid/1853

JAPANESE SHIPPING LINES TO MERGE

admin — Tue, 15 Nov 2016 12:45:39 +0000

Three of Japan’s largest shipping companies have announced that they plan to merge their container shipping and overseas terminal operations as the industry struggles with overcapacity and mounting losses.

The statement from Mitsui OSK Lines, Nippon Yusen Kaisha (NYK) and Kawasaki Kisen Kaisha, says they are forming a joint venture to unite their container shipping operations and terminal management businesses outside Japan.

The three shipping lines said they hoped to attain a more competitive scale through their joint venture. It will rank sixth worldwide, with a combined fleet capacity of 1.4 million teu and a seven percent global market share, they claim.

Some YEN 110 billion (USD1.1 billion) is expected to be realised in savings from the merger.

“Due to low oil prices, sluggish cargo demand and over-supply of trade capacity, container freight rates are at historic lows,” the statement said, adding that there were limits to how much the three companies could manage to save on their own.

NYK will contribute 38 percent of the equity in the approximately YEN300 billion (USD2.9 billion) joint venture, with Mitsui OSK and “K” Line each providing 31 percent.

The companies’ terminal operations in Japan and other businesses, such as bulk shipping, ferries and logistics will not be merged.

The deal, which is subject to approval by regulators, foresees the establishment of a joint venture company on July 1st 2017, which will start business operations on April 1, 2018.

The latest news is further evidence of the various steps being taken in the container sector to counter the low oil prices, sluggish cargo demand, oversupply of trade capacity and the fact that container freight rates are at historic lows.

The joint statement said: “Although growing modestly, the container shipping industry has struggled in recent years due to a decline in the container growth rate and the rapid influx of newly built vessels. These two factors have contributed to an imbalance of supply and demand which has destabilised the industry and has created an environment that is adverse to container line profitability.

“In order to combat these factors, industry participants have sought to gain scale merit through mergers and acquisitions and consequently the structure of the industry is changing through consolidation.”

Evidence for that is all around with CMA CGM’s acquisition Neptune Orient Lines (NOL), which owns APL; the merger of Hapag-Lloyd and UASC; and further merger of China Ocean Shipping (Group) Company and China Shipping (Group) Company, had merged to form China Cosco Shipping Corporation (Cosco Shipping).

All of which came before the bankruptcy of Hanjin Shipping in August this year

EU, US And China Meet On Maritime Transport Issues

admin — Fri, 03 Jul 2015 20:12:09 +0000

BEIJING (Alliance News) – The EU on Thursday said representatives from the maritime regulatory authorities of the EU, the People’s Republic of China and the US met in Brussels to discuss antitrust and regulatory issues in maritime transport. The delegates confirmed their renewed intention to cooperate on these matters.

Hosted by the European Commission’s Directorate-General for Competition, this was the second official meeting between the three authorities, following the first maritime regulatory summit that took place in Washington in December 2013.

The discussions focused on the global trend towards increased cooperation in the liner shipping market, as well as on regulatory and policy issues related to ports. With the continued growth in scope of carriers’ cooperation, the authorities considered that monitoring of the sector warrants ever closer contact and better communication between competition and regulatory authorities.

Delegates also discussed their respective enforcement activities and highlighted each authority’s priority issues such as port congestion.

A joint statement by the European Commission, the Federal Maritime Commission and the Chinese Ministry of Transport said, “Today’s exchanges have been a valuable opportunity to foster cooperation between our three authorities. We have identified areas of common importance and we look forward to continuing our constructive dialogue.”

Largest cargo ever transported across 600km in Iraq

admin — Tue, 30 Jun 2015 00:44:11 +0000

ALE has transported two LPG storage tanks 600km from Umm Qasr Port to Badra Oil Field in Iraq – the largest cargo that has ever been transported this distance in Iraq.

The global heavy-lifting specialists were contracted by Samsung Engineering and Construction Limited (SECL) to transport two LPG storage tanks measuring 50m long and weighing 250t.

Preparation started in June 2012, where ALE conducted a route survey of the 660km itinerary which highlighted some challenging crossings, such as passing through 11 bridges and negotiating obstacles.

The transportation started in May, and upon receiving the tanks at Umm Qasr port, ALE transported these using three prime movers and 2 x 24 axle lines of conventional trailers.

ALE used this long trailer configuration to enable the load to be spread whilst crossing the 11 bridges on route to Badra Oil Field.

ALE’s country manager for Iraq, Alberto Pittaluga, said: “The successful execution of these deliveries over such a long distance is the consequence of the early engagement with the final destination.

“ALE matured a complete mastery of the routing and its constraints allowing the team to pre-plan and propose a technically driven solution which enabled the awarding of this project and the successful consignments.

“The team worked hard to navigate this challenging route, removing obstacles, constructing bypasses and engineering a trailer configuration to negotiate the multiple bridges.

“The client was pleased with the execution and an additional eight units have to be transported within October 2015.”

The tanks arrived in June and the total transit time from port to site was 12 days.

Asia-Europe to take hit as Cosco places mega ship order

admin — Tue, 30 Jun 2015 00:39:54 +0000

After months of rumours, there is increasing confirmation that the major Chinese shipping group Cosco is planning to add mega-ships to it container carrier fleet.

Cosco has reportedly ordered nine 20,000-teu ships, with an option for four additional vessels of the same size, according to several news media.

The container ships will be built at three different Chinese shipyards: Shanghai Waigaogiao Shipbuilding (SWS), Nantong Cosco KHI Ship Engineering (NACKS) and at Dalian Shipbuilding Industry Co.

The ultra-large container ship newbuilding order comes just days after Maersk Line ordered 11 similarly-sized vessels of 19,630-teu each.

That order came after CMA CGM confirmed it had ordered six 14,000-teu ships, which came weeks after OOCL ordered six 21,000-teu container carriers.

Hapag-Lloyd is also now rumoured to be on the verge of placing an order for several ULCSs, but there is no word yet on the capacity for these newbuilds.

The spate of new orders puts further pressure on the already strained rates on the flagship Asia-Europe service, which is currently suffering from record low freight rates as shipping lines wage war with one another in an attempt to secure volume and retain market share.

In the period from May to late 2015, 630,000 new teu has been ordered in newbuilds of vessels of 10,000-teu or above, with the same level of newbuildings set for delivery in 2016 and 2017, according to a report from Drewry in late May.

And the orderbooks for 2018 and 2019 are also being filled, with the Cosco order representing the latest addition.

Drewry has forecast that all newbuildings of 14,000-teu or above, representing a combined capacity of 503,000-teu to be delivered in the remainder of 2015, will be deployed on the Asia-Europe route.

The Port of Felixstowe reveals expansion plan

admin — Tue, 30 Jun 2015 00:35:56 +0000

The Port of Felixstowe has announced plans for expansion that include doubling port capacity to accommodate the world’s largest vessels by 2030.

The UK’s largest port, owned by Hutchison Ports UK, awarded the lead contract to expand its berthage to the Volker Stevin and Boskalis Westminster (VSBW) consortium. The extension will increase the combined lengths of berths eight and nine, which opened in 2011, to 3,018 ft.

The development will enable the port to permit two megaships with capacities of up to 21,000 teu to berth simultaneously. The strength of the quay wall allows the berths to be dredged to 59 ft or 16 m alongside depth.

The first phase of development at the berths includes the acquisition of 10 ship-to-shore cranes (STS) from ZPMC, along with three additional ZPMC cranes when the current development is complete.

Mark Seaman, HPUK finance director said: “We handled over 4.1m teu in 2014, which puts us above pre-recession levels. We have over 4,000 ship calls annually, are now at 200 crane moves an hour and service around 33 shipping lines that operate some 90 services to and from 365 ports around the world. More and more containers are arriving on mega-vessels.”

Felixstowe has broken two records this year already having handled the largest ship in its history, the 19,100 teu CSCL Globe, before breaking the feat again in March, handling the MSC Oscar with 19,224 teu.

Other projects include building berth 10, while the port has also applied for planning permission for the Bathside Bay project across the estuary in Harwich that would give it an 8m teu capacity.