Our Partner, TNT Drive Me Challenge
These guys take their driving seriously…
Passion, fun, challenging – colleagues from TNT are training for this years driver competition. Check it out!
Understanding Exporting for Small Business
Are you a small business who wants to get to grips with exporting? Get started with our partners, DHL slideshare:
Understanding exporting: the basics of trading internationally
Need further advice? Contact us.
‘First for Business’ Magazine feature
Trying to explain what a freight forwarder is can be quite a challenge. We get asked the question often and generally describe it as a transport company but without any vehicles.
We work with an extensive network of global partners searching for the best solutions for your shipping needs. In many ways, similar to that of a travel agent, the difference being we look for the best deals for transporting goods around the world instead of passengers.
Over the last twenty years, we have worked closely and built up trusted relationships with all the major international carriers and shipping companies, allowing us access to high level support and heavily discounted rates.
Trading with the Middle East: Tips for British business
How to trade with Saudi Arabia: Customs tips
Economic diversification increases
Many of the countries in the Middle East are energy exporters with “fiscal cushions” that remain robust even when energy prices fluctuate. However, the countries are aware that natural oil is a finite resource and are taking active steps to plan for the future and expand into other sectors and industries.
Dubai is already ahead of this trend: as the Emirate never had oil and gas resources, it has already established itself as a trading hub, retail and tourist destination.
Market and product niches
As part of their drive towards diversification, the economies of the Middle East are investing in:
Infrastructure: projects include transportation initiatives such as metro and rail networks, as well as air and sea ports
Healthcare: populations and treatment trends (including medical tourism) are increasing
Education: there’s high demand for training the local population so the society can “look after itself” once the oil runs out
Security: solutions to address regional concerns about safety
Article courtesy of our partners: DHL > Read full article.
Freight forwarding market continues to grow
Consultants Mike King and Cathy Roberson conducted a survey for the new APAC Forwarding Index, indicating that airfreight volumes on major East-West trade lanes, are expected to continue to grow in the coming months, with only nine percent of respondents expecting lower volumes in August than in May across all APAC lanes.
“The three-month outlook for airfreight remains positive,” said Roberson. “Across all lanes over half of respondents expect volumes to be higher in August than now with optimism most obvious on the APAC-North America lane where 71.43% of respondents predict higher volumes in August than in May. The lane is expected to benefit from key electronic product launches in the coming months,” she explained. The new iPhone, which is already being distributed, is one example.
When comparing airfreight volumes for May and April, 52.3% of respondents reported growth; this was strongest on APC-Europe, Europe-APAC, APAC-North America and APA-Emerging Markets lanes.
Roberson considered: “Forwarders and other logistics stakeholders have struggled with low rates by air and ocean for an extended period. But there are signs that supply-demand equilibrium is returning to both markets and this should create new margin opportunities for those with a strong footprint in Asia.
“To what extent digital forwarders will win chunks of this expanding pie will be interesting to follow over the rest of 2017,” she concluded.
The APAC Forwarding Index will also include information pertaining to the seafreight market and is scheduled to be published this summer.