AD Ports Group has signed a shareholder agreement with KMTF (Kazmortransflot), a fully-owned offshore logistics and services subsidiary of the Kazakh National Oil Company (KazMunayGas), to launch an exclusive joint venture, 51 percent owned by AD Ports Group and 49 percent owned by KMTF, to provide offshore and shipping services for energy companies in the Caspian Sea. Furthermore, the two parties have signed an agreement to pool tanker resources, said reports. The joint venture, which will look at investments opportunistically will offer a broad range of services, including offshore support vessels, integrated offshore logistics and subsea solutions and, at a later stage, will offer container feedering, ro-ro and crude oil transportation in the Caspian Sea and the Black Sea. The enterprise will tender for a number of identified projects with estimated maritime contract values of more than USD780 million. AD Ports Group and KMTF also signed a seven-year vessel pooling agreement, the joint venture includes the provision of several tankers for the transportation of crude oil internationally. Furthermore, the agreement will see KMTF’s fleet working alongside SAFEEN Group’s existing AFRAMAX tanker, with intent to acquire further vessels in the short-term. The objective is to jointly carry 8-10 million tonnes of crude annually in the medium-term.

Uttar Pradesh is planning to develop a network of dry ports and freight container stations to boost exports, said reports. The state plans to develop a modern logistics ecosystem in partnership with private players. “A dry port is an inland intermodal port directly linked to a seaport by roads or railway to facilitate faster movement of export cargo. Under the UP Warehousing and Logistics Policy 2022, the state will fast-track land allotments for logistics parks and offer a string of subsidies and incentives to attract private investments. The state will support the private sector for the development of storage facilities, cold chains, multi-modal parks, container depots, and container freight stations infrastructure in the state,” the reports added. “The fresh policy has been framed with an objective of developing a strong logistics ecosystem and fostering an international business and investment environment to achieve the trillion-dollar economy vision,” a government official said. The state targets to hike merchandise exports from Rs 1.56 trillion to nearly Rs 3 trillion in three years, reports added.

According to IATA’s 2023 Trends – Transport of dangerous goods by air, more than 1.25 million dangerous goods (DG) shipments are transported by air every year, and with the volume of air cargo expected to increase, the number of dangerous goods shipments will also grow, particularly those containing lithium batteries. Consumer demand for electronic devices such as tablets and small personal mobility devices such as e-bikes is a key factor in driving this increase. As a result, there are new entrants in the market, which creates a need for training, process improvement and adoption of new technologies. As per the report, Compliance will continue to be a challenge as supply chains evolve and regulations are developed and refined. To keep pace, it is critical for organizations to assess their DG operations to identify opportunities within their compliance infrastructure and processes. Improving and streamlining your DG operations can be implemented in phases and through a blended approach including: *Technology: Automate DG operations and establish repeatable and reliable processes across the supply chain utilizing DG software and integrating it with your ERP or other systems; *Training: Utilize gamification or 3D training experiences to better train and recertify employees, and do so quickly and remotely; *Packaging: Refine your packaging strategies to further improve efficiency, safety and compliance throughout the supply chain; and *Regulations: Keep your employees and supply chain partners up-to-date on the latest regulations using digital regulatory materials.”

“As 2022 comes to a close, we have seen demand for air cargo soften when compared to 2021. While forecasts have been adjusted downwards, the air cargo sector is still projected to grow and outpace pre-pandemic levels in 2023. We will likely see a reduction in capacity constraints, especially out of the Asia Pacific region,” says Martin Drew, Senior Vice President Global Sales & Cargo, Etihad Aviation Group. He adds, “We can expect to see some softening of global yield levels with the return of more belly-hold capacity. However, an imbalance between strong demand and available supply in key cargo origin markets along with a relatively high share of freighter capacity will continue to demand higher yields. Some of the challenges we have faced in 2022 will remain in 2023. We will need to closely monitor macroeconomic factors, high fuel prices, supply shortages and ongoing border and travel restrictions. However, even with these challenges, tremendous opportunities are available to carriers who are agile, work collaboratively with stakeholders across the sector, and can adapt to evolving market conditions. We are continuously exploring introducing new territories and countries and focusing on our existing network to provide market-leading services based on customer demand. As we come to the end of 2022 and look ahead to 2023, we will continue to evaluate new markets and opportunities to grow our offering to our customers as part of Etihad Cargo’s wider cargo strategy.”

Our enhancement in both air and ground package handling capacity is on track, and the company has initiated actions to build furthermore on the infrastructure front. Blue Dart will expand its fleet with two Boeing 737 aircraft,” Ketan Kulkarni, Chief Commercial Officer, Blue Dart This aircraft is ideal as it can reach smaller airports to increase connectivity further and create value for stakeholders. In 2022, the company also signed the UNFCCC Climate Neutral Now pledge as a step towards its sustainability roadmap, making significant strides towards creating technology that is future-ready, thereby opening the door for stakeholders to accept sustainable logistics that aim to shrink the ecological footprint. The recently launched National Logistics Policy also supports this and will accelerate the development of transportation and logistics infrastructure in the country. With the digitization of the logistics industry, there will be further developments in the coming years as artificial intelligence, cloud, automation, robotics, block chain, big data, and IOT will be used in mainstream logistics, making the industry smart while being time sensitive. The future of logistics indeed is exciting with the introduction of independent drones delivering packages to their destinations among various significant overhauls within the logistics industry. Businesswise, the people piece of our industry is a crucial one given the VUCA world we work in, with continuous investments needed in Talent. The government support through the National Logistics Policy, including PM Gati Shakti National Plan (NMP) for multimodal connectivity infrastructure to various economic zones, is also a tailwind for the industry. This will help towards creating an integrated, cost- efficient, resilient, and sustainable logistics ecosystem in the country as it covers all bases of the sector along with streamlining …

The International Air Cargo Association (TIACA) has predicted another tough 12 months for air cargo demand. In its latest newsletter, the association said that high inflation, high interest rates, high energy costs and concern over job security have compounded to create an air of defensive consumer spending, which is in turn affecting the air cargo industry. “However, the current situation is temporary and we can hope that later in 2023 central banks will start reducing interest rates when inflation is considered to be under control,” TIACA said. “Although before things improve, we can expect a further slowdown as energy costs are expected to remain high through winter 2022, particularly in Europe. “But structurally the industry is in a good place and towards the second half of 2023 we could see demand picking up compared to this year.” The association added that current retail inventory levels are high but when consumer spending resumes this should come down. Meanwhile, the relaxation of Covid of the zero covid policy in China should help production levels improve in the country. Elswhere, the air cargo industry continues to innovate. “There are many positive things which we can focus on such as innovation, which since early 2020 has been phenomenal, from process innovation to technical innovation to people and skills innovation,” TIACA added.

ColdStar Logistics has launched its multi-temperature state of the art distribution center in Mundka (New Delhi/NCR). The facility is built over 50,000 sq.ft. fully palletized, with large staging and processing area, said Linkedin post. The facility offers seamless distribution services to the entire New Delhi/NCR region. The distribution center covers 120 plus pin codes in the city with over 200 unique deliveries executed every day.

Celebi Delhi Cargo at Indira Gandhi International Airport, New Delhi, launched WhatsApp Chatbot Connect service for cargo tracking to elevate customers’ experience. Cargo customers can get a real-time update on Celebi WhatsApp Connect and track the status of international cargo using the Air Waybill number. WhatsApp Connect will facilitate hassle-free, quick, and simple two-way communication where customers can get secure and trustworthy information at their fingertips. Kamesh Peri, CEO, of Celebi Delhi Cargo said, “As a leading Cargo Terminal Operator our aim is to provide the best services to our customers each time and provide maximum visibility of their cargo. With Celebi WhatsApp Connect, we bring to our customers, real-time visibility of international cargo handling along the various stages of terminal operations. Our WhatsApp Connect enables a two-way communication medium where our customers can get reliable information about their cargo at Celebi Delhi Cargo Terminal. This is part of our ongoing digitalization initiative to simplify the transaction process and provide ease of access to information. We believe it will help our customers not just in terms of visibility but also to plan resources, increasing overall efficiency.”

The International Federation of Customs Brokers Associations (IFCBA) recently celebrated 30th anniversary and organized a conference focusing on the World Customs Organization (WCO) study review of the Harmonized System of Tariff Classification. Customs brokers from 12 countries namely Asia, North and South America, the Caribbean, and Africa, participated. FFFAI also participated in this important meet. Representing FFFAI, its Executive Committee Member Vikrant Gogia made a presentation at the IFCBA Conference to highlight the recent developments in Indian Customs with active collaboration from the pan India apex body FFFAI. He also shared that Indian Customs Act 1962 completes its 60 years and FFFAI shares the common Diamond jubilee year celebration. Gogia emphasised on the Indian Customs various facilitation measures along with IT and faceless transaction initiatives, which include Electronic Cash Ledger, Anonymized Escalation Mechanism, Electronic Cargo Tracking System, Customs Brokers Licensing Management Portal, Turant Customs, E-Sanchit, Authorised Economic Operators, Direct Port Delivery, etc, which ensure Ease of Doing Business in line of the Government of India’s mission. With a transparent and trust-based system in place, Indian Customs and Customs Brokers in India working as partners to promote the EXIM trade in the country. FFFAI is constantly in dialogue through its recommendations and working together with the Indian Customs and Government of India for achieving the set target of $5 trillion economy by 2025. The audience representing different countries from across the world strongly applauded the developments pertaining to ease of Customs Clearance and Customs Broking Business in India.

ight demand is expected to remain low on most trade lanes in Q12023 due to high inventories and low sales, according to the latest report from DHL Global Forwarding. “Volumes might pick-up prior to Lunar New Year but will be followed by low demand. Demand will increase only as countries start recovering from high inflation,” says the report. While capacity recovery will continue month on month subject to market conditions, spot rates are likely to be aggressive in Q1. Worldwide inflation is likely to continue into 2023 with low GDP growth, the report said. Service disruptions outlook include employee shortage, airport backlogs due to strikes and flight cancellations and “unforeseen” circumstances due to Covid policies. Global capacity was -10 percent compared to December 2019 but +7 percent compared to last year. “Capacity remains available on majority of trade lanes with some tight spaces on some ex-EMEA and ex-China trade lanes. With currently low volumes, capacity is sufficient to support the demand.” With improving sea freight schedule reliability and cost reduction, some volume shift continues from air freight to ocean, the update added.