Newsletter – April 6, 2021

AIR FREIGHT UPDATES

cargo.one to welcome Air Canada Cargo

aircargoweek.com
cargo.one has entered into a letter of intent with Air Canada, through its cargo division Air Canada Cargo, to offer its capacity on cargo.one’s leading air cargo booking platform. Upon conclusion of a definitive agreement, freight forwarders will soon have access to a first-class booking experience with real-time capacity and quotes. The airline is poised to become the first North American airline on the cargo.one e-booking platform. Read more here.

Google Software Issue Causes Multiple Airline Booking Sites To Report Downtime

simpleflying.com
A software issue saw the websites of several major United States-based airlines temporarily down on Monday. The software, provided by Google, normally displays flight and price data. But the bug saw prospective passengers unable to search or book flights. Among the airlines impacted were Delta Air Lines, American Airlines, and United Airlines. Read more here.

1/3 Of The Current Global Airline Fleet Is In Storage: 10,000 Planes!

simpleflying.com
Despite signs of life in many aviation markets, much of the airline industry remains in the doldrums. The number of passenger flights currently operating worldwide is just 61% of the number of passenger flights operating over the same time in 2019. As a result, the number of planes in storage has soared. At the end of February, there were over 10,000 commercial passenger planes in storage worldwide. Read more here.

Forwarders to have a greater say in IATA’s cargo programme

aircargonews.net
The Cargo Agency Conference (CAC) will in the future be required to consult with freight forwarder councils before any future resolutions are made.
Following a recent decision, CAC, which is entirely composed of airlines, will have to consult with Regional Joint Councils before any future resolutions, or amendments to resolutions, are proposed and considered by the CAC. Read more here.

Is COVID fatigue dampening air cargo’s recovery?

aircargoeweek.com
The New Year recovery in global air cargo volumes stalled in March as volumes fell -3% versus comparative data for March 2019, but reduced airline capacity levels saw the ‘dynamic loadfactor’ and prices remain ‘relentlessly high,’ according to the latest market data from industry analysts CLIVE Data Services and TAC Index.
To give a meaningful perspective of the air cargo industry’s performance, CLIVE Data Services’ first-to-market data is continuing to focus on comparing the current state of the market to pre-Covid 2019 volume, capacity and load factor data until at least Q3 of this year. This is being produced alongside the 2020 comparison. Read more here.

OCEAN FREIGHT UPDATES

Demand boom on collision course with ocean transport ceiling

freightwaves.com
U.S. containerized imports show no sign of letting up as the second quarter begins. On the contrary: Consumer demand is strengthening in the wake of fiscal stimulus and falling inventories that necessitate even more restocking.
The biggest risk to Q2 container-shipping volume is not demand for goods, it’s transport supply. Read more here.

Cargo ship bottleneck off Los Angeles nears six-month mark

ajot.com
Ship congestion outside the biggest U.S. gateway for Asian imports remained elevated with the wait to offload containers lengthening to eight days, adding costs and complications for companies trying to stay well-stocked in an accelerating economy.
A total of 28 container ships were anchored awaiting entry into the neighboring ports of Los Angeles and Long Beach, California, as of Sunday, compared with 26 a week earlier though still below a peak of 40 in early February, according to officials who monitor marine traffic in San Pedro Bay. Another 16 are scheduled to arrive over the next three days, with seven of those expected to drop anchor and join the queue. Read more here.

INTERNATIONAL BUSINESS – GOVERNMENT UPDATES

U.S. factories desperate for workers, even as ranks of jobless remains high

reuters.com
(Reuters) – Matt Arnold just spent $5,000 to run help-wanted ads for his company’s five trailer factories scattered from Pennsylvania to Utah.
“We hired two from the ads,” said Arnold, just a fraction of the 125 he needs to get back to full strength of 673 workers. Half the welding jobs at his Texas plant are open, for instance, creating a bottleneck in an operation that builds trailers on metal frames. Read more here.