‘Well placed to take advantage of BRICS developments’

After a “very good”
financial year that saw
business growth in the
region of 15%, independent
sea and airfreight
consolidator CFR Freight is
braced for more of the same
– although the extremely
volatile global financial
and political environment
makes accurate predictions
difficult.
“We’ve always focused on
both imports and exports but
the strong rand is not helping
exports and our business is
following this natural trend,”
says managing director
Martin Keck.
This is particularly
relevant in CFR’s airfreight
division where imports
are a key focus.
The company has entered
into block space agreements
(BSAs) from the US, Europe
and China in order to
guarantee space to its clients.
“We have contracted
BSAs out of Amsterdam
and our AirCargo Group
partner, Groupair, has put
in place a whole trucking
network throughout Western
Europe supported by offices
in Amsterdam and Brussels.
It’s not purely an Amsterdam
product but rather a Western
Europe product offering a
named-day service from
Amsterdam into South
Africa,” CFR’s airfreight
general manager Dave
Graham told FTW.
Positive market response
has seen significant growth
in volumes, he added.
In terms of its seafreight
product, CFR’s global
coverage is extensive.
“We’re coming from nine
ports in China, we offer
an import service from
Argentina that is unique in
the industry, and our service
out of India covers Delhi,
Chennai and Mumbai.
We even offer an import
service from Thailand,
and Europe is traditionally
comprehensively covered. In
addition our services go to
all ports in South Africa,”
said marketing director Peter
Schmidt- Löffler.
Africa is also a big focus.
“In conjunction with our
partners, the WorldWide
Alliance, we have very good
representation in all of the
important markets – Ghana,
Nigeria, Angola, Kenya,
Tanzania, Mozambique,
Uganda, Rwanda and
Burundi,” said Keck.
“We’re also opening more
and more offices worldwide
– from Eastern Europe to
South America and South
East Asia. And with the
BRICS agreement in place,
the company is well placed
to take advantage of any
trade growth from these
regions.
“India, Brazil and China
are covered – and we’re
very well set up in Russia,
Ukraine, Baltic States,
Slovenia and the Czech
Republic,” says Keck.
With cheaper taxes
and labour encouraging a
number of manufacturers
to set up shop in Eastern
Europe, CFR is looking
forward to trade growth
from these new areas.
Cautious optimism is how
Keck describes his outlook
for the year ahead.
“The days where you
could predict even your
own business outlook are
over. The current business
environment demands
flexibility – and CFR is up
for the challenge.”