air cargo outlook

Air Cargo Market: Brace for big rate hikes

Cargo loading on a big jet as viewed from behind the tail, close up.

The air cargo market is building up pricing momentum towards the fourth quarter, putting all-cargo carriers and airlines with cargo-only passenger freighters in a strong position relative to shippers.  

Freight rates have climbed since early July with the slow return of international passenger capacity combined with consistent growth in cargo shipments as the global economy, notably in China, continues to recover from coronavirus.

Export demand to the U.S. is very high, as is traffic from...

https://s29755.pcdn.co/news/air-cargo-market-brace-for-big-rate-hikes

Pressure on air cargo rates from China keeps increasing

A white FedEx cargo jet flanked by large trucks. The air cargo market is volatile this summer and prices are heading up on key lanes.

Outbound airfreight rates from China continued to rise for the fifth consecutive week, with pricing the strongest out of Shanghai as shipments increased for electronics, e-commerce orders, and hospital gear.

The pricing trend is good for carriers. But it means higher costs for cargo owners, especially with a large amount of all-cargo capacity already committed to big gadget launches from Sony, Apple and Samsung in the next couple months. There also is uncertainty about how many aircraft...

https://www.freightwaves.com/news/pressure-on-air-cargo-rates-from-china-keeps-increasing

Atlas Air capitalizes on transport shortages for big Q2 profit gain

Atlas Air 747 freighters parked under a dark sky. Atlas Air announced a large Q2 profit.

Atlas Air Worldwide Holdings, Inc. (NASDAQ: AAWW) on Thursday reported that revenues in the second quarter jumped 24.3% from the same period in 2019 to $825.3 million, significantly pushing up adjusted net income as the all-cargo operator cashed in on the extreme demand for pandemic relief supplies and high freight rates.

A significant shortage of global air cargo capacity resulting from airlines withdrawing passenger flights during the coronavirus crisis resulted in higher utilization of Atlas’...

https://s29755.pcdn.co/news/atlas-air-capitalizes-on-transport-shortages-for-big-q2-profit-gain

Virus slows airlines from adding capacity, airfreight volatility increases

Pallets of freight offloaded an Emirates 777 passenger plane onto a hydraulic lift. The use of passenger planes as freighters is dictated by strong market economics.

The outlook for economic recovery and better health for airlines is more pessimistic and that’s bad news for manufacturers and other shippers seeing input costs rise due to higher transport prices in the COVID era.

Passenger airlines are reporting huge second-quarter losses, terminating employees and slowing the reintroduction of flights as the coronavirus flares up. Fewer flights means fewer transport options for shippers already facing a supply shortage, but full-freighter operators – and freig...

https://s29755.pcdn.co/news/virus-slows-airlines-from-adding-capacity-increasing-airfreight-volatility

Air cargo market: Rationality returns, but for how long?

Big silver jet with pallets of cargo next to it on the ground.

Current and lagging indicators show the air cargo market is continuing to stabilize after a three-month bubble that saw transport rates quintuple for China export routes. Despite the apparent slow-down in shipments of personal protective equipment, shortages of face masks and other medical supplies at U.S. hospitals could make the correction short-lived.

Air freight volumes are picking up as the recovery in global economic activity spurs cross-border trade in more typical goods for manufacturers...

https://s29755.pcdn.co/news/air-cargo-market-rationality-returns-but-for-how-long

Air cargo picks up in May, demand still weak

Machine lifts cargo pallets up to door of plane for loading.

Shipments are increasing as the global economy gradually reawakens from a coronavirus-induced slumber and that is translating into slightly better air cargo demand, new data shows.

The International Air Transport Association (IATA) reported air cargo volume fell 20.3% in May from 2019, but that was better than April’s year-over-year decline of 25.6%. International demand, measured by the amount of cargo tons times distance carried, dropped 21.5% in May.

The trade group’s figures show better...

https://www.freightwaves.com/news/air-cargo-picks-up-in-may-demand-still-weak

Market watch: Air cargo frenzy dies down

Cargo on pallets waiting to get loaded on a plane.

The white-knuckle ride through the airfreight market stratosphere has ended as prices continued to fall back toward earth again last week, bringing relief to companies that purchase air transport to move their goods.

The change in conditions is best illustrated by export flows from China to the U.S. and Europe, where air rates have tumbled more than 60%, from $15 to $20 per kilogram at one point, to under $10 per kilogram, as panic-buying for personal protective equipment (PPE) gives way to...

https://s29755.pcdn.co/news/market-watch-air-cargo-frenzy-dies-down

Cargo revenues buoy airlines amid $84b loss for 2020

Cargo pallets on the tarmac and the tail of Swiss Air Lines with white cross on it

Airlines stand to lose more than $84 billion this year, driven by a 50% reduction in revenues, but without the boom in cargo business the industry’s predicament would be even worse, the International Air Transport Association (IATA) said Tuesday in an unprecedented description of the financial tsunami crashing over the industry due to the coronavirus pandemic.

Cargo typically is a small portion of the overall industry, especially for passenger-focused airlines, but not this year. Cargo revenues...

https://s29755.pcdn.co/news/cargo-revenues-buoy-airlines-amid-84b-loss-for-2020

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