The current backlogs at China\’s main airfreight hubs Beijing, Shanghai, Hong Kong and Guangzhou will continue at least into next week. For now, there are delays of 3-4 days at most airports. The situation at Guangzhou is worse; here, delays of 7-8 days are to expect, apart from \”first class carriers\”, which are also delayed by 3-4 days. As the forwarders expect the delays to get worse next week, they are planning on \”VIP rates\” for quicker delivery, which are going to be slightly higher than the current rates.
CEVA Logistics said though they had not been expecting a peak season to materialize in 2015, they notice strong request of air freight from key production hubs in Asia. Starting mid-October, manufacturers are rushing to get their goods mostly to Europe and North America. Compared to previous years, this Christmas season\’s air freight volumes is strong, but shorter concentrated on a few weeks.
The current strike of Lufthansa\’s cabin group does not help the situation. Though it mostly hit the airline\’s passenger schedules, it also limits the cargo carrier\’s capacity by 50%.