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Air cargo volumes to grow 4.7pc in Middle East.

Mideast to be ‘fastest growing region’ for air cargo

GENEVA, October 22, 2014

The Middle East is set to be the fastest growing region between 2014 and 2018 for air cargo an annual growth rate of 4.7 per cent, according to the International Air Transport Association (Iata) Airline Industry Forecast 2014-2018.

The UAE, which will replace Germany as the third largest market, along with US and China will each add more than one million additional tonnes of freight by 2018, compared to the current volume, it said.

The international freight volumes are expected to grow at a five-year average of 4.1 per cent, said the forecast.

The fastest growing international routes will be between the Middle East and Asia, at 6.2 per cent per year, it said.

The volume imbalance, which has been forecast to continue, from Asia to North America is estimated to be 1.1 million tonnes in 2018, and from Asia to the Middle East will 0.6 million tonnes, it said.

Meanwhile, the second fastest growing market - Africa - will have an average growth rage of 4.4 per cent, while Asia-Pacific and Latin America will be at 3.8 per cent will be the joint third fastest growing markets.

Iran is expected to be the fastest growing country, of nations with more than 100,000 tonnes of cargo per year, for air freight volumes over the forecasting horizon with an average of seven per cent per annum.

Qatar will be another notable growth country with an average growth rate of 5.7 per cent and it will the sixth-fastest growing, seeing an additional 361,000 tonnes of total freight.

The Middle East-Asia region has shown the largest gain, up 0.8 percentage points to 6.9 per cent in terms of freight traffic share by route area in 2018, while Asia Pacific and Europe-Asia are expected to increase their shares very slightly to 21.8 per cent and 12.4 per cent respectively.

Tony Tyler, Iata’s director general and CEO, said: ”Air cargo remains as vital to the global economic system as ever. This year, more than $6.8 trillion worth of goods, equivalent to 35 per cent of total world trade by value, will be transported around the world by air. So it is welcome to see a forecast for a return to growth for the air cargo sector after several years in the doldrums.

“An average of more than four per cent growth for the next five years would be a marked improvement on the performance of recent years. Since 2011, for example, growth in freight tonnes has averaged just 0.63 per cent per year.”

"Nevertheless, despite the positive picture, the overall risks to the economic outlook, and therefore to air freight, remain towards the downside. Trade protectionism is a constant danger. According to the World Trade Organization (WTO), between November 2013 and May 2014 alone, 112 new trade-restrictive measures were enacted by G20 governments,” said Tyler.

“Geopolitical concerns, volatility of oil prices, and competition from rail and sea could also affect this forecast. The air cargo industry certainly cannot afford to be complacent," he said.

The industry is aiming to cut average transit times by up to 48 hours by 2020, to enhance air cargo competitiveness, said Tyler. The air freight is modernising its processes, improving quality and reliability, and widening the range of services offered.

A key component of modernised processes is the e-Freight project, which will render air cargo shipments paperless. As a first step, the industry is adopting the e-Air Waybill (e-AWB), he added. - TradeArabia News Service




Tags: Middle East | Iata | cargo | freight | Air | volumes |

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