Signs of recovery in import volumes

Safmarine is pulling out all the stops to increase import volumes in a diminished market. That’s according to Sandy Long, recently appointed imports manager: operations for Safmarine Johannesburg. A born-and-bred ‘Jo’burger’ who joined Safmarine 22 years ago, Long has made it a priority to strengthen the Safmarine Gauteng import unit by improving the team’s knowledge of the import process as well as data quality, invoicing and communication. “The timelines for an inland port such as Johannesburg tend to be far more demanding then those for coastal ports. We work with up to 15 different cut-off times and deal with multiple coastal ports, which is why communication plays such a crucial role in the service we provide to customers.” She says the global economic downturn has put the country’s importers under severe pressure. “All importers have been affected and we, as Safmarine, believe that improved communication is one of many ways we can support our import customers during these difficult times.” Long says although Gauteng imports have begun to show signs of recovery, the exact reason for the pickup is unknown. “It is most likely driven by a need to restock exhausted inventories, particularly ahead of the 2009 Christmas season,” she says, expressing the hope that the upward trend will gain momentum towards the end of the year. “We’ve not yet seen the benefits of the interest rate reductions made in early 2009, so we’re hoping these will begin to filter though to the market, leading to improved imports towards the end of 2009.” Although import/export volumes into Gauteng have been more balanced in 2009 (as a result of the reduced imports), the challenge of an imbalanced trade – from an equipment point of view – remains. “The majority of Gauteng exports tend to be heavy and therefore shipped in 20 foot containers while 40 foot containers remain popular for ‘lighter’ imports – such as frozen foods, machinery, chemicals and automotive and allied goods – which are shipped to Gauteng from China, Thailand, Brazil, USA and India. “Finding the right export cargo to balance the trade continues to be a key priority for Safmarine,” she says.