Tag: Courier/Express/Parcels

Estafeta adds two planes to cargo fleet

Posted by | Jun 16, 2008 | |

Mexican express operator Estafeta is expanding its fleet of cargo planes by adding two Bombardier CRJ jets with capacity of five tonnes, Mexican media reported.

The two new planes will operate on the routes from its San Luis Potosí hub to the northern cities of La Paz and Ciudad Juárez and on the east-west Villahermosa-Guadalajara route. They will replace smaller aircraft previously operated by third-party contractors.

The company’s operations director, Ricardo Becerril, stated that the two additional aircraft would enable it to carry larger shipments over longer distances, while also reducing the number of flights. The express operator currently has a fleet of five B737 cargo planes, which capacity of about 14 tonnes, flying to 12 destinations within Mexico and abroad.

Estafeta said that the two new aircraft were part of this year’s ongoing USD 30 million (EUR 19 million) investment in its air network and infrastructure. The bulk of the investment will go on a runway extension at its hub at San Luis Potosí in central Mexico that will enable international flight operations. Estafeta also plans to add a third small cargo plane, to open a new centre in Mexico City and inaugurate additional sites in Toluca, Morelia, Leon and Guadalajara.

“Although these are times of uncertainty, we are doing everything possible to maintain our programme of investment,” director general José Antonio Armendáriz was cited as saying. “We have always believed that at times of difficulties, investment supports job creation and contributes to the competitiveness of the country.”

Estafeta increased net sales by 13 pct to USD 250 million and carried 25 million shipments in 2007. It is targeting 15 pct revenue growth this year, partly to be generated through a new LTL trucking service covering Mexico and the USA.

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Consumer Electronics and E-Commerce

Posted by | Jun 16, 2008 | |

Many consumers to pull back on gadget spending

Despite the jittery economy, eMarketer predicts that retail e-commerce sales in the US will reach USD 146 billion this year, up 14.3% over 2007.

However, some categories of retail e-commerce may not fare as well as others. Two traditionally strong online sales categories—computers and consumer electronics—may see a slowdown, based on a Piper Jaffray study of online buyers. Along with jewelry and watches, more respondents said they were likely to decrease spending on these categories than on any other.

That conservative approach will also affect total retail sales for those categories, judging by a similar study by The NPD Group. More than one-third of responding consumers said they planned to spend less on entertainment products and devices, compared with 18% who said they would spend more. Almost one-half said they would keep spending the same amount as last year. As a result, NPD said that sales of such products would slow slightly.

Seasonality is another important trend to watch. For online retailers, the holiday season is the best time for consumer electronics sales, according to Nielsen Online data. In November 2007, the average order size for consumer electronics hit an annual high of USD 135, a rise from October’s USD 127 average, settling to USD 132 in December. The rest of the year, Nielsen data shows the average order size hovered around USD 93 to USD 100.

By contrast, online sales of computer hardware peak in summer based on strong back-to-school demand. The category had monthly average online sales of USD 272 and USD 256 in October and November 2007, respectively. These sales were far larger than those in the consumer electronics category—but also far lower than the averages posted for computer hardware in July (USD 455) and August (USD 387).

While last year’s monthly sales patterns will likely hold true this year, exactly how much consumers will spend remains in question.

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Deutsche Post CEO says in no rush on Postbank

Posted by | Jun 15, 2008 | |

Postbank owner, Deutsche Post, is in no hurry to reach a decision on a possible sale of the German retail bank, Chief Executive Frank Appel told Reuters in an interview.

‘I don’t feel any rush or haste. I will decide according to what is best for Deutsche Post, but also for Postbank,’ Appel said on Saturday during a trip to China with German Foreign Minister Frank-Walter Steinmeier.

Postbank, the country’s biggest retail bank, is up for sale and its owner has invited expressions of interest. Sources familiar with the matter told Reuters last week that if offers are good enough, Deutsche Post will push ahead with a sale within weeks.

Deutsche Bank has flagged interest in Postbank, as have Allianz and Commerzbank, which are making a joint approach. They would plan to swallow Postbank into a newly created group that would include Allianz’s Dresdner Bank.

Asked about the possibilities on the table for Postbank, Appel said: ‘We are sounding out options and are not participating in any speculation.’

Appel was participating in a three-day trip with Steinmeier to China, where Deutsche Post’s delivery arm DHL express is moving to strengthen its foothold in the fast-growing market.

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time:matters opens branch office in Singapore

Posted by | Jun 15, 2008 | |

time:matters is continuing its internationalisation strategy with the establishment of its first Asian branch in Singapore. More Asian locations are planned for the near future.

As the Asian headquarters, the new time:matters Asia Pacific Ltd. in Singapore is responsible for on-site customer service in East and Southeast Asia as well as in the Pacific area.

Following the establishment of European branches in Switzerland and Austria, Poland and the Netherlands, the new site in Singapore is time:matters’ first Asian branch office. Up to now the company has been represented locally by sales agents from the parent company Lufthansa Cargo in more than 20 Asian cities. The number of time:matters’ own offices on the Asian continent is to increase in the coming months.

With the establishment of the branch office in Singapore, time:matters is taking into account that the need for extremely fast, yet at the same time highly reliable logistics solutions is increasing worldwide – especially on intercontinental routes – which particularly applies to the Asia-Pacific region.

Manufacturing processes that are characterised by the increasing outsourcing of individual production steps as well as the continual reduction of storage, also cause logistics – especially in the Asia-Pacific area – to be faced with new challenges with regards to speed and punctuality.

time:matters said that it orients itself towards these requirements, whereby the focus in the Asia-Pacific region is currently on the car-supplier and the high-tech industries. The operator’s solutions for the transport of time-critical shipments, for example spare parts or electronic components, are particularly useful for other logistics service providers.

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