Industry News
Global air cargo growth slows Ian Matheson , from Impress Communications, reviews some recent news that might impact on Members’ business. Don’t miss Ian’s weekly news round up on BIFA TV, which can be seen on our You Tube channel. Subscribe by scanning the QR code.
IN THE AIR Global air cargo demand grew by 3% year-on-year in September, according to Xeneta, signalling a slowdown from the stronger 5% gains seen in July and August. Xeneta has predicted that a market downturn, with capacity exceeding demand, will see airfreight rates drop in 2026, prompting shippers to seek longer-term contracts to their advantage. At the FIATA World Congress, Airforwarders Association executive director Brandon Fried said the association’s members have reported higher duties, longer cycle times, and greater complexity
in returns management since the de minimis thresholds ended on 29 August in the US. Fried said the industry has moved overnight from light- touch clearance to full formal entry and is seeing fewer parcels but larger, better- documented shipments. Fraud has dropped, but working- Glasgow Prestwick Airport has entered an agreement with Chinese carrier Beijing Capital Airlines, a member of Hainan Airline Group, to launch a four-times-a-week freighter service with Zhengzhou Xinzheng International Airport. capital and compliance burdens have climbed sharply.
The first flight, operated by an Airbus A330-243 (P2F), arrived at Prestwick on 16 October. Beijing Capital is the third cargo airline to start services to Prestwick in the October saw container shipping lines blanking sailings at a pace not seen since the height of the COVID-19 pandemic, as tariff turbulence, reciprocal port fees on ships by the US and China, and weak US demand ripple through global supply chains. Data from Container Trades Statistics (CTS) shows that global container traffic continues to climb, with throughput figures for 2025 setting new records and last six months. ON THE OCEAN surpassing earlier forecasts. The latest CTS data, published in early October, showed that between January and August, global container volumes reached 126.75 million TEU, marking a 4.4% increase compared with the same period in 2024. In mid-October, Seatrade Maritime magazine asked the question “is a collapse of the container shipping market imminent?”, suggesting that a combination of tit-for-tat port fees by China and the US, and return to Red Sea transits flooding the market with capacity, could plunge container shipping lines into the red. It added that cautious lines are not imminently expected to resume Red Sea transits, but the prospect is likely to be contemplated in the New Year if the second phase negotiations in the conflict between Israel and the Palestinians are successful.
The combined capacity of the major container shipping alliances, together with MSC, now accounts for 82.5% of global container shipping capacity. On its own, MSC commands 21% of global container shipping capacity. OVER LAND Transport Intelligence (Ti) published a logistics briefing in mid-October on the European road freight industry, which takes a look at the market landscape. It includes a ranking of the top 20 operators in the market and reviews the performance of the leading players, both organic and acquisitive, and is available on the Ti website. GLOBAL TRADE It may have been a difficult year so far, with global trade being regularly hit by tariff turmoil and protectionist measures, but the latest UNCTAD Global Trade Update suggests that 2025 could see new record levels. On a rolling annual basis, the latest update notes, growth remains robust at around 5% for goods and 6% for services. IN BUSINESS A recent report says that economic uncertainty and geopolitical instability have pushed optimism in the UK logistics sector to its lowest level in 14 years. Produced by Analytiqa, the Barclays-BDO UK Logistics Confidence Index 2025 has a score of only 40.4. That is down from 57.6 in 2024 and the lowest recorded since the research began. All down to higher costs, sluggish growth, cautious consumers and geopolitical tensions, with nearly seven in 10 logistics operators thinking current trading conditions are more difficult than last year.
6 | November 2025
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