JOY ORLEK IN LINE with general trade trends, International Liner Agencies continues to see significant volumes moving into South Africa from the Far East. Working closely with its Far East partners, FCC Logistics, the company is focusing on the launch of more direct services into South Africa, with speediest transit at the best rates the key considerations. “With carriers changing routing from time to time it’s crucial to keep abreast of the changes,” says director sales and marketing Raymond Cutts. “Our Far East agent was in South Africa recently to meet local shippers and to explore service enhancements.” A key benefit of the ILA service is that boxes are closed at the port of loading and not reworked or devanned before they reach their SA destination, says Cutts. Direct services into Cape Town are available from a wide range of key ports in the East. And volumes are buoyant, says Cutts, despite an apparent slow-down which saw factories closing earlier and opening later for the Chinese New Year. “Effectively this meant a close-down of 14-20 days rather than the traditional seven,” says Cutts. The company's export business to worldwide destinations is also on an upward spiral. “We’re beginning to reap the rewards of our investment and development over the past few months,” says Cutts. In line with this growth, Mandy Gibson, previously branch manager in Cape Town, has been appointed trade manager for the Far East while Gary Bedser has taken over the reins as operations manager for imports and exports based in Cape Town.
