Incotrans picks up lucrative European business

J0Y ORLEK CURRENCY ISSUES invariably affect cargo flows, and the rand/dollar exchange rate may have played a role in the growth of airfreight cargo moving into Africa at the end of last year, in the view of Incotrans managing director Mauro de Rose. “We saw a significant increase, with cargo ranging from medical goods and machinery to security equipment moving to East and West Africa in the last quarter of 2006. “We managed to pick up a lot of new business from Europe which has kept our business ticking over nicely.” In terms of available capacity on key routes, De Rose has no complaints. “Three or four years ago, when it came to the last quarter of the year we were making bookings two or three weeks in advance to secure space. Now there is either more capacity or people are planning ahead and using seafreight where possible because space constraints are no longer a problem.” Growth and more growth is the outlook for the year ahead, says De Rose. “Staying competitive and maintaining service levels as volumes increase is the challenge we face.”