South African
exports are
growing steadily
and air cargo
carriers are increasing
f light frequency to meet
demand on the continent,
according to a cargo agent.
Stephen Bishop,
airfreight general manager
at CFR Freight which
covers 80% of Africa with
airport to airport and
Delivery at Place (DAP)
services, said the company
had grown over the past
year and anticipated
exports from SA to the
continent to increase in the
long term. CFR partners
with members of the
AirCargoGroup network
to move goods on the
continent and to facilitate
global cross-trade into
Africa.
“Carriers are increasing
their f lights into the
territories and this presents
more options for cargo to
reach destinations faster
and more competitively,”
Bishop said.
“Nigeria, Kenya,
Tanzania, Zimbabwe,
Zambia, Angola and Ghana
will continue to grow in
the year ahead – and with
increased carrier options
capacity has never been
better,” he added.
According to the latest
International Air Transport
Association
(Iata)
statistics
CFR Freight
moved 3200
tonnes
of cargo
via Iataregistered
airlines alone,
making it
the seventh
biggest
cargo agent
operating
out of the country. The
company focuses on moving
general cargo on scheduled
f lights and via a multitude
of charter options and
has capability to handle
project, temperaturecontrolled
and perishable
cargo.
“Our volumes in general
have steadily increased over
the last year. According
to the latest published
Iata stats, CFR recorded
70% growth in 2015 with
a sizeable
chunk of
our traffic
heading
into Africa,”
Bishop said.
“Our
continued
growth
last year
enabled us
to increase
our buying
power and
our strong
relationships with carriers
has enabled us to offer
products and services that
help our clients succeed in
their markets.”
Bishop said the rand’s
volatility was expected to
impact import volumes
negatively in 2016 but
the company remained
“cautiously optimistic” on
this front.
“The uncertainty over
our economy means we
need to ensure we are
looking at adding as
much value as possible
to our client’s business
rather than focusing
on a pure transactional
basis.”
Bishop added
that there
would always
be challenges
in airfreight
on the
continent
but these
presented
opportunities to provide
solutions.
“Where possible we look
to mitigate risk and
would prefer to
pay a bit more
money to deal
with professional
companies that
can help find
solutions,” he
said.
INSERT & CAPTION
According to the
latest published Iata
stats, CFR recorded
70% growth in 2015.
– Stephen Bishop
Cautious optimism despite volatile rand
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