It is reported that the Civil Aviation Administration previously held a publicity and implementation meeting for the operation of "passenger-to-cargo" flights to standardize the cabin cargo standards for "passenger-to-cargo" flights, requiring the cabin to prohibit the carriage of non-epidemic items. From January 1, 2022, only epidemic prevention-related articles are allowed to be carried in the passenger cabin. Specifically, the carrier will establish a whitelist system for goods and clarify the names of the epidemic prevention materials that can be carried.
At the same time, the new regulations also require that the cabin seats can no longer be removed to increase the cargo space. Airlines that have been removed or are undergoing modification projects should be restored according to the original configuration. The introduction of the new regulations is mainly for the consideration of safe transportation, so as to avoid the hidden danger of transportation safety caused by the inability to effectively fix the cargo in the passenger compartment.
Since the outbreak of the epidemic last year, a large number of passenger planes have been grounded under travel restrictions, and "passenger-to-cargo" has been adopted as cargo capacity. At present, airlines such as the three major state-owned airlines have begun to restore the original configuration of the aircraft with seats removed. This new regulation will further reduce air cargo capacity and aggravate the current air capacity shortage. The superimposed fuel price is still at a high level. In the short term, the air freight rate will be will be further improved.
On the other hand, the tight air freight capacity may lead to the release of some air freight demand to sea freight, which will bring about a further rise in sea freight rates. The overall freight rate is expected to continue to rise.
Currently, shipments of goods related to epidemic prevention are increasing significantly, and there has been a huge increase in demand in the past two weeks.
"It's mainly caused by one commodity - the Covid-19 rapid test kit - which is in huge demand in Europe, as was the case with PPE last year. The factories are full, so it sounds like The peak period will not weaken soon." According to the freight forwarder.
"This has resulted in a difference in rates between China (where the PPE is made) and Hong Kong (which focuses on general cargo)," he added. Capacity is still low in mainland China, where most charter flights are currently via dual-use The CAAC may only approve half of the charter applications. Capacity shortages will remain a major concern, with new passenger bans expected to reduce capacity and drive up rates.
The forwarder said the trans-Pacific market is still tight and is a very bad market. Shipments to South America will be shipped via the U.S., as the shipping capacity via Europe is very limited, so the shipping costs are very high, around $18-$20 per kilo. The rental fee for pure cargo aircraft is currently sky-high, about $1.8 million to $2 million.
The freight forwarder said freight rates rose by 10%-15% last week and are now seeing freight rates that are at an all-time high, similar to last year's record, and even express door-to-door prices may be cheaper than air freight , but the courier is also seriously delayed.