Trans-Pacific air cargo demand is surging, driven by the launch of new high-tech products such as Apple’s iPad 3.
Paul Tsui, chairman of the Hong Kong Association of Freight Forwarding and Logistics, said shipments of the latest iPad, which was launched in San Francisco on Wednesday, started two weeks ago.
He also said Samsung’s new Galaxy range was boosting demand, helping pushing up ad hoc trans-Pacific rates by around 15-20 percent in the last two weeks depending on carrier choice.
A source at a major cargo airline also confirmed the demand surge.
“Transpacific volumes have seen an improvement in late February and March due to a number of large new product introductions by leading hi-tech companies,” he said. “This is expected to continue through to the end of March given that it is a quarter-end.”
Tsui expects the movement of iPads and Samsung products to slow down soon. “[R]ight now we are mainly clearing the backlog,” he said.
Multiple reports have named DHL as the primary carrier for the new iPad 3, but a spokesperson refused to confirm or deny the claims. “DHL does not disclose shipping agreements with any customers,” she said.
The Journal of Commerce Online
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