Air Cargo Business Suffers a Major Downturn: Taiwan carrier starts to sell air cargo aircraft

A decline in air cargo shipments from Taiwan will continue into next year, an executive at one of the country’s biggest carriers said today.

EVA Air President Chang Kuo-wei said Q4 was usually the busiest time for air cargo because of the Christmas season in the US and Europe, but he had yet to see any sizable surge in volumes.

"This year has been the worst year since I entered the trade," said Chang.

Reflecting the declining demand for air cargo, he said, EVA Air had already sold two freighters and planned to sell another by the end of the year.

"It is appropriate to get rid of cargo planes because of the economic changes, and the move conforms with actual operations in the market," he said.

He said passenger traffic was holding up, but Chang added that based on past experience, this tended to fall after cargo demand declined for six months.

EVA Air would closely monitor market changes, he said.

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Taipei, Oct. 27, 2011 (CENS)--Air cargo business is experiencing the worst year in over 10 years and is seeing a business lower than the normal level during the fourth quarter, a traditional a busy season, reported Chang Kuo-wei, president of Eva Airways, yesterday (Oct. 26).

The sluggish air cargo business appears to mirror the languid performance of the local electronics industry, since air freighters are used mainly for transporting electronic goods. Eva Airways is the second largest domestic carrier, with a fleet of over 15 cargo planes.

Chang noted that the company’s passenger flight business remains robust and is even slightly better than the internal forecast, thanks to the booming business for cross-Taiwan Strait and European routes, in terms of load factor and profits. In contrast to red inks in the past, the company’s business for the European route has turned around this year, bringing it considerable profits. One major reason is free visa treatment accorded to Taiwanese visitors to Europe.

Chang pointed out that in the past years, air shipment for electronic products used to pick up in August, in preparation for the Christmas season. However, this year demand for air cargo shipment has remained low and there is no sign of improvement up to now. “This is the worst year for air cargo business since I joined the air transportation business,” said Chang. Chang foresaw that the lackluster performance will continue into next year, due to the massive migration of Taiwanese industries to mainland China.

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