The Middle East – a vibrant business hub

The Middle East trading bloc of nations, although composed of geographically small states, is a vibrant place of business for SA shippers, according to Arnold Garber, chairman of freight systems specialists, Compu- Clearing. “It’s a healthy combination of utterly import-dependent states, and a giant, high-quality trading ‘flea-market’.” That, he added, is especially true for goods freighted to and from SA. “There are now lots of flights to Arab countries,” he told FTW, with Johannesburg-Dubai alone accounting for three flights a day, every day. “That’s from Jo’burg alone. You can add one flight a day from Cape Town.” Supplementing this from October 1, the Dubai-based carrier Emirates will be adding its much-heralded flight-a-day from Durban – and, from that date, it will be offering 35 weekly flights out of SA, nonstop to Dubai. Add to that three flights-aweek by other airlines to Abu Dhabi; four times a week to Doha, Qatar; twice a week to Jeddah; and, if you really want to extend the Middle East just a shade further east, three times a week to Istanbul in Turkey. “And in between all this lot,” said Garber, “you’ve got Tel Aviv in Israel three times a week. “And there’s a lot of traffic between SA (mostly out of OR Tambo International Airport) and that part of the world. More than most people imagine.” Garber agreed that this volume had somewhat decreased along with everything else in this global economic crisis. “But,” he said, “comparatively, not as much.” Seen on its own, Garber rates Dubai as the primary international trade hub in and out of the Middle East region. “And 90% of the cargo arriving there flies onwards,” he told FTW, “a surprising amount of it bound for/from Europe and the UK.” And a reason for the popularity of the Middle East airlines? “Good service, and good rates,” said Garber.