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This extraordinary year continues to deliver new surprises for the air cargo sector and the world alike, particularly in the field of cross-border e-commerce logistics. As highlighted in our E-commerce Report on page 4, higher US tariffs and the end of US 'de minimis' exemptions have had a profound impact on e-commerce flows, prompting a significant shift in China-US freighter capacity to other markets globally. An initial steep decline in air freight volumes from China to the US has subsequently moderated, although it is still significant – especially from Hong Kong and southern China. Exports of low-value and e-commerce goods from China to Europe are up by around 60% – double the growth rate a year ago. Some European airports such as Budapest (BUD) have seen their overall air cargo volumes rise by close to 50% this year, although the rapid growth began even before US President Trump's interventions this year. Çelebi Group CEO Dave Dorner, in an interview on page 12, estimates that cargo through BUD has risen by around 200% in the last two years. As the Europe Report highlights (page 20), Europe's top 10 cargo airports have seen barely 1% growth in international air cargo traffic this year, whereas smaller, specialist cargo airports – often favoured by e-commerce shippers – have grown much more rapidly. Alongside BUD, Prague, Warsaw, Liège, Brussels, and East Midlands airports have reported significant rises in cargo traffic. Elsewhere, various cargo airports in Asia have recorded strong growth again this year, with southeast Asian countries including Vietnam and Thailand among those helping to replace China as sources for US imports. Another highlight in Asia is India, as the country's exports and air cargo capabilities continue to build. Those capabilities will include a new major airport for the Mumbai Metropolitan Region from the end of this year with the opening of Navi Mumbai International Airport (page 34). Its opening as 'complementary capacity' to BOM marks a key stage in the fulfilment of a dual-airport strategy for the region, and for India's air cargo market. The new airport is also less than 20km north of India's largest container port, JNPT, and there are ambitious plans to create synergies between these air and ocean nodes. Potential synergies between air and ocean freight are a recurring theme in this edition of CAAS, highlighted in the interview with Kale Logistics' CEO Amar More on page 28, along with the potential of Ai within air cargo. Both also featured among the discussions at October's ACHL conference in Copenhagen (page 46). But speakers at ACHL cautioned that the potential of Ai within air cargo was limited by the quality of the data that feed it, which must remain a priority focus area for stakeholders throughout the sector.
By Chris Notter4.2
55 ratings
This extraordinary year continues to deliver new surprises for the air cargo sector and the world alike, particularly in the field of cross-border e-commerce logistics. As highlighted in our E-commerce Report on page 4, higher US tariffs and the end of US 'de minimis' exemptions have had a profound impact on e-commerce flows, prompting a significant shift in China-US freighter capacity to other markets globally. An initial steep decline in air freight volumes from China to the US has subsequently moderated, although it is still significant – especially from Hong Kong and southern China. Exports of low-value and e-commerce goods from China to Europe are up by around 60% – double the growth rate a year ago. Some European airports such as Budapest (BUD) have seen their overall air cargo volumes rise by close to 50% this year, although the rapid growth began even before US President Trump's interventions this year. Çelebi Group CEO Dave Dorner, in an interview on page 12, estimates that cargo through BUD has risen by around 200% in the last two years. As the Europe Report highlights (page 20), Europe's top 10 cargo airports have seen barely 1% growth in international air cargo traffic this year, whereas smaller, specialist cargo airports – often favoured by e-commerce shippers – have grown much more rapidly. Alongside BUD, Prague, Warsaw, Liège, Brussels, and East Midlands airports have reported significant rises in cargo traffic. Elsewhere, various cargo airports in Asia have recorded strong growth again this year, with southeast Asian countries including Vietnam and Thailand among those helping to replace China as sources for US imports. Another highlight in Asia is India, as the country's exports and air cargo capabilities continue to build. Those capabilities will include a new major airport for the Mumbai Metropolitan Region from the end of this year with the opening of Navi Mumbai International Airport (page 34). Its opening as 'complementary capacity' to BOM marks a key stage in the fulfilment of a dual-airport strategy for the region, and for India's air cargo market. The new airport is also less than 20km north of India's largest container port, JNPT, and there are ambitious plans to create synergies between these air and ocean nodes. Potential synergies between air and ocean freight are a recurring theme in this edition of CAAS, highlighted in the interview with Kale Logistics' CEO Amar More on page 28, along with the potential of Ai within air cargo. Both also featured among the discussions at October's ACHL conference in Copenhagen (page 46). But speakers at ACHL cautioned that the potential of Ai within air cargo was limited by the quality of the data that feed it, which must remain a priority focus area for stakeholders throughout the sector.

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