This month saw the groundbreaking ceremony for the new Cathay Pacific cargo terminal, set to open in 2011, as well as a doubling of capacity at DHL’s central Asia hub.
Lilian Chan, Hong Kong Air Cargo Terminal’s (Hactl) general manager of marketing and customer service, said: “The situation is worse than 9/11 and SARS (Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome) put together.”
“This is not a very glamorous time for the industry,” Chan said. “The current business situation is not very favourable to the entire aviation sector, particularly because of rising fuel prices, and the softening of economies elsewhere. I imagine next year we will be lucky if we get a two to three per cent increase. Anything above that would be a real bonus.”
Chinese central government moves over the last year and more to cool the Chinese economy in hopes of a smooth landing saw a significant cooling in the output of the once roaring PRD region. This resulted in a slow shift of part of the region’s manufacturing base to other parts of China and outside the country to places like Vietnam.
“A lot of the key international brands and a lot of the electronic and highvalue appliance companies have plants in the PRD region, but with all those plants relocated elsewhere in places such as Vietnam and Indonesia taking advantage of cheaper labour, it’s natural that the finished products do not pass through Hong Kong,” Chan said.
But Hong Kong International’s efficiency and unrivalled global connections has ensured it remains a favoured air cargo hub for much of the neighbouring region’s cargo movements, despite modern cargo facilities at both Guangzhou and Shenzhen.
