The outlook for air freight markets could not be more uplifting, at least according to one of Asia’s leading carriers. Taiwan’s EVA Air reports that freight demand and economic indicators have been positive since the second half of 2016 and the carrier is now looking to secure more market share on key lanes to and from Asia.
     “Following the upward international trading figures and airfreight growth from the second half of 2016, selling rates are going in an upbeat direction,” said a written response from EVA to Flying Typers.      “According to IATA and WorldACD’s reports, they have the same observation. Asia-Pacific traffic saw significant growth among all regions. As EVA is the major player in this traffic, and we see similar demand.”
     Although growth rates for the UK and US were downgraded in the International Monetary Fund’s latest forecasts, the global economy is still expected to expand by 3.5% this year and by 3.6% in 2018, laying the foundations for strong freight demand. Air freight markets are also expected to be boosted by a string of electronic product launches in the coming months. Which helps explain why EVA is so confident the second half of 2017 will be positive.
     “The second half of 2017 will be critical for airfreight performance due to heavy shopping seasons such as Back to School, Thanksgiving sales and Christmas,” said the carrier. “Typically, demand for cargo space is stronger in the second half and we expect rates will go up this year.”
     EVA echoed recent positive indicators from IATA which revealed that global air cargo demand, measured in FTKs, grew 12.7% year-on-year in May 2017. IATA predicted demand would grow at a robust rate of 8% during Q3 2017.
     “Demand is growing faster than capacity is expanding,” said the airline. “At the same time, the air cargo industry has weathered difficult markets over the past few years. While market supply and demand may not yet be fully balanced, the increase in belly space on passenger aircraft and the number of freighters show growth in market capacity that is more balanced than it has been over the last couple of years.”
     With demand on the rise, EVA is now eyeing market expansion. “EVA is both an aggressive and sensible market player,” said the carrier. “We pay careful attention to our airfreight operations and, at the same time, closely monitor our flight frequency and capacity for both passengers and cargo.
     “Currently, the major share of international passenger and cargo markets is captured on Asia-Pacific lanes. And right now, we’re using this market to gage our network expansion.
     “We are adding more Boeing 777-300ER passenger flights on trans-Pacific and Asia lanes to get more market share. Besides, we will also take delivery of Boeing 777 freighters from Q4 this year to renew our freighter fleet, and start introducing Boeing 787 Dreamliners from the second half of 2018 to expand service network.
     “EVA is committed to delivering services with a renewed and upgraded fleet and keeping customer satisfaction as our top priority.”
     As is the case with most carriers, e-commerce is viewed as a major future strategic growth area for EVA’s cargo division. “Cross-border e-commerce is growing so fast and is becoming one of the leading airfreight sources,” said the airline. “No player in this market can ignore its significance. EVA is closely tracking its development. And we have expanded our capacity and network on trans-Pacific and intra-Asia lanes. We are a major player in this market.”
     The airline industry has been accused of tardiness in adopting e-freight common standards and technology, thereby hindering supply chain transparency and the growth of e-commerce. But EVA is one airline which is doing its utmost to embrace the digital age.
     “IATA’s e-AWB project is a very important piece of the e-freight initiative,” said the carrier. “Moving to e-AWB will enable us to achieve our 100% e-freight vision. EVA is committed to supporting this project to the best of our ability. We have already achieved 55% penetration with e-AWB and expect it to continue expanding quickly.”
     In promoting e-AWB and e-freight solutions, the carrier is now offering a range of electronic data interchange platforms for customers including FTP Host-to-host Connection. It is also working with service providers such as Trade-Van, Champ, Descartes, GLSHK, Traxon, CCSP, CCN, CCSJ and Cargonaut.
     “Through this electronic data input (EDI) platform, forwarders, ground handlers and other users can digitally exchange shipping details with EVA,” added the airline. “Customers can also take advantage of advanced track and trace function on our EVA Cargo global website [www.brcargo.com] and use our EVA Cargo APP to smoothly track the process and have transparent control of our freight services.”
SkyKing