Newsletter – April 16, 2019

AIR FREIGHT UPDATES

Rising fuel costs and capacity surplus push Lufthansa into loss

reuters.com
Rising fuel prices and falling ticket prices have led to a fall in Lufthansa’s first-quarter profit, according to a trading update. While it won’t publish full results until the end of this month, it will report an operating loss of €336m, larger than analysts expected, said Reuters. Read more here. 

B737 MAX turbulence brings repercussions for freighter conversions

theloadstar.com
The lengthening shadow of Boeing’s woes over the B737 MAX is reaching 737 freighter conversions. Read more here. 

OCEAN FREIGHT UPDATES

Digitization does not mean a race to the bottom on pricing

aircargonews.net
Digitization will not result in a race to the bottom on pricing for forwarders, according to SeaIntelligence Consulting founder Lars Jensen. Read more here. 

US west coast ports suffer ‘tariff hangover’ in the first quarter as volumes fall

theloadstar.com
US west coast ports suffered most from a “tariff hangover” effect in 2019’s first three months, said Drewry Maritime Research in a new research note today. Read more here. 

Yantian Express set to sail on, but some cargo owners still owe GA payments

theloadstar.com
Reloading containers onto the Yantian Express is scheduled to begin today.
Owner Hapag-Lloyd said the fire-hit ship was expected to depart for its next port of call at the end of the month, but it warned this was in doubt as a number of cargo owners had still not paid general average and salvage security. Read more here. 

INTERNATIONAL BUSINESS – GOVERNMENT UPDATES

Chinese exports surge in March

lloydsloadinglist.com
Chinese export activity last month showed strong signs that a recovery is underway.
Export growth in US dollar terms rose 14.2% year-on-year in March from -4.6% in January-February. However, import growth in USD terms slowed to -7.6% in March from -3.2% from January-February. Read more here. 

Cargo crime in EMEA region expected to reach record high

lloydsloadinglist.com
The Transported Asset Protection Association (TAPA) expects 2019 to be another record year for recorded cargo crime in the Europe, Middle East & Africa (EMEA) region. Read more here.