Weekly Air Operations Update: Shanghai to Europe, US and Australia 01/09/23

Shanghai to London

• Space has become tight and rates are rising rapidly
• Airport operations are currently normal
• Hauliers are working as normal
• No flight cancellations
• No weather disruptions
• Space is tight
• Rates have begun to rapidly increase due to a new launch of electronic products

Shanghai to New York

• Space has become tight and rates are rising rapidly
• Airport operations are currently normal
• Hauliers are working as normal
• No flight cancellations
• No weather disruptions
• Space is tight
• Rates have begun to rapidly increase due to a new launch of electronic products

Shanghai to Los Angeles

• Space has become tight and rates are rising rapidly
• Airport operations are currently normal
• Hauliers are working as normal
• No flight cancellations
• No weather disruptions
• Space is tight
• Rates have begun to rapidly increase due to a new launch of electronic products

Shanghai to Frankfurt

• Space has become tight and rates are rising rapidly
• Airport operations are currently normal
• Hauliers are working as normal
• No flight cancellations
• No weather disruptions
• Space is tight
• Rates have begun to rapidly increase due to a new launch of electronic products

Shanghai to Melbourne

• The market and air rates are currently stable
• Airport operations are currently normal
• Hauliers are working as normal
• No flight cancellations
• No weather disruptions
• Space is open
• Air rates are stable

Shanghai to Sydney

• The market and air rates are currently stable
• Airport operations are currently normal
• Hauliers are working as normal
• No flight cancellations
• No weather disruptions
• Space is open
• Air rates are stable

Market intel

• Air shippers make changes as a post-Covid world normalizes
  

  MAERSK flight activity that shippers see as a post Covid normalization of the air freight market, reports Massachusetts Supply Chain Quarterly.

  FedEx has reduced flight hours eight per cent and is parking more aircraft because of low demand. On the shippers' side, supply chain leaders are resetting prices.

  This results in big rate reductions and the need to charter planes, overcapacity surcharges and other accessorial expenses, said the report.

  Furthermore, shippers rewarding carriers and forwarders that were true strategic partners during the challenging times by giving them more business.

  During the Covid scare, shippers faced skyrocketing rates, many heavy air freight users realised that they were mismanaging shipments. Some were overusing certain service levels or not planning their shipments effectively.

  This mismanagement was exacerbated in the capacity-constrained market, causing organisations to "bleed" air freight spend.

  "Reflecting upon lessons learned, many shippers have started making operational changes, such as reducing the frequency of intracompany shipments while consolidating loads, rationalising service levels on high frequency lanes, and standardizing transit-time requirements," the Supply Chain Quarterly article said.

  "These improvements should continue even though market conditions have changed. What shippers seem to be still struggling with is integrating their demand planning with their operational functions to make their air freight demand more predictable, which would, in turn, help shorten lead times, reduce spot buys, and control overall costs," said the article.
  
  

• N. China
  With the new launch of Apple and other electronic manufacturers’ new products, space is tight and air rates have risen rapidly; this trend is expected to continue until the end of September.
  
  
• S. China
  The current space situation in South China is still relatively normal, and the air rates are relatively stable.