China’s air import tonnages dropped sharply in the final few days leading up to Lunar New Year (LNY) on 10 February, along with intra-Asia Pacific traffic, contributing to a -12% fall in overall global tonnages, week on week, according to the latest figures from WorldACD Market Data.
Analysis of week 6 (5 to 11 February) indicates that China’s inbound air cargo tonnages slumped by -15%, week on week (WoW), in the seven days to 11 February, while the country’s outbound tonnages held up better with a decline of just -2% as the LNY holiday week approached. That follows a surge in tonnages and rates ex-China in the previous two weeks, as shippers rushed to get goods shipped before the LNY holiday period. Both inbound and outbound tonnages are expected to fall further this week.
Average global rates held firm and rose slightly in week 6, as they did in the equivalent week last year (week 3) ahead of LNY, based on the more than 400,000 weekly transactions covered by WorldACD’s data. Initial analysis suggests that the patterns this year are broadly similar to last year, although global tonnages so far are well above last year’s levels. But the relative timings of LNY are significantly different, with LNY falling on 22 January last year, and a clearer picture will emerge by the end of this month.https://www.aircargoweek.com/china-inbound-tonnages-slump-as-year-of-the-dragon-starts/