CHARTER AND
FORWARDER
UPDATE
changing: we started to see
the return of general cargo
requests, as well as project
cargo (outsized loads and
the like). However, although
general cargo has been taking
the place of PPE, we are not
seeing enough it; demand
simply isn’t coming back
quickly. This is all down to
consumer habits, of course.
With the restrictions in most
countries, people may decide
to stay with their existing
phone or car or whatever
and not trade up. Retail
outlets have been opening
but that doesn’t mean to say
that people are shopping as
before. Consumer spend is the
industry indicator, after all.
“The months of June, July
and August are the transition
months; the third quarter
and the fourth quarter are the
important periods and that’s
when we will see where the
market is going.
“To be honest, no-one can
tell at the moment which way
things will go. Demand is less
at present (this remark was
made in June - Ed) but belly
capacity is now coming back;
so the situation has reversed.
“Freight rates have also
been in the news, but that’s
only to be expected when
demand is high. This has been
noticeable in Asia to Europe
we need to take stock. For
my part, I’ve done a lot of
conference calls, which has
worked perfectly well although
in this business, person to
person contact is still very
important.
“And, asking around, I can
tell you that most customers
do not know what is coming:
we’ll know more towards the
end of the year.”
On that prophetic note the
article ends. Looking back, it
is safe to say that the charters
have had the lion’s share of
good fortune, but whether
those good times will continue
to roll for the rest of the year
remains to be seen.
... demand simply
isn’t coming back
quickly
Reto Hunziker, Chapman Freeborn
traffi c. But those charges are
coming down again now more
space becomes available.
“At Chapman Freeborn
we’re used to an unpredictable
market but nonetheless, it’s
very hard to forecast. Being
fl exible helps, as does thinking
outside the box. We’ve had a
really busy period and now
14 August 2020 www.airlogisticsinternational.com
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