Tag: TNT

Eurocarex to provide express transportation by rail in Europe

Posted by | Jul 21, 2008 | |

Roissy Cargo Rail Express Association and European Intermodal Association (EIA) have signed a “Memorandum of Interest” in Brussels in preparation for the launch of the rail express network “ Eurocarex” which would have clear environmental benefits, the French newspaper Le Lloyd reported.

The project is aimed at creating a European high-speed rail network to transport express and cargo shipments from 31 March 2012 onwards. The plan is to run trains between a new express freight station at Roissy-Charles de Gaulle airport and other airports such as Lyon, Lille, Liege, Amsterdam, Cologne and London, with other airports being added later. The key project members include French railway operator SNCF, Air France Cargo, FedEx, La Poste and TNT.

According to Yanick Paternotte, the president of Carex Cargo Rail Express, Eurocarex will initially employ 8 high speed trains specially designed for air cargo with a capacity to transport up to 100 tons of express shipments per train every night to corresponding terminals in Lyon, Lille, Liege, Amsterdam, Cologne and London. Perfectly adapted to the loading of air containers, the trains can be reloaded in less than 45 minutes each.

In spite of the initial investment of estimated EUR 600 million in the special trains and EUR 300 in terminals, Paternotte is convinced that the project will pay off.

The express market will make up the core business of Eurocarex, complemented through air cargo. Public authorities are tempted by the positive environmental impact striving to limit the noise pollution caused by night flights, Le Lloyd further reported.

According to a study conducted by EIA, the transportation via high speed trains would reduce CO2 emissions up to 98 pct compared to air transport.

The Eurocarex network is planned to be extended to cities Strasbourg, Bordeaux, Marseille and Francfort with 20-23 trains in service until 2015.

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FedEx chief says U.S. is not in a recession

Posted by | Jul 21, 2008 | |

FedEx Corp. Chief Executive Officer Fred Smith said the U.S. economy isn’t in a recession and that oil prices will “drift down for a while.”

FedEx said in June the coming year would be “very difficult” because of near-record fuel prices and a cooling domestic economy. U.S. shipping volume fell 3.4 percent for the three months ended May 31, as fuel surcharges for express service reached 28 percent.

Oil will likely fall in the second half, Smith said, declining to predict a price. “Whether it stays at USD 140 or goes down to USD 110 is anyone’s guess,” he said. “Barring some global event, I think oil prices will drift down for a while.”

Crude jumped more than 70 percent in the past year, closing at a record USD 145.29 a barrel on July 3. The price has dropped 10 percent since then, to USD 130.10 this morning on the New York Mercantile Exchange.

While some shippers are still trading down to cheaper shipping options such as two-day or ground delivery, the “vast majority” of those switches have occurred already, Smith said. Intercontinental express shipments are growing at a “good rate,” he said, without giving specific figures.

Smith wouldn’t comment on his interest in any acquisitions. The Financial Times reported on July 12 that FedEx is in preliminary discussions to buy TNT NV, Europe’s second-biggest express-delivery company.

There have been “lots of rumors swirling about TNT for years,” Smith said. “We don’t comment on corporate development activities.”

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A long and stony road to European postal competition

Posted by | Jul 18, 2008 | |

Following full liberalisation in four European countries (UK, Germany, Sweden and Finland), about 54 pct of the total EU mail market in volume terms is now completely open to competition, Alex Dieke, head of Postal Services and Logistics for German-based market research institute wik-Consult, told last month’s World Mail & Express Europe conference in Budapest organised by Triangle Management Services. But experience from these four liberalised markets showed that “it will take a long time for effective competition to arrive”, he commented. In the long-term, competitors might be able to gain up to 20-25 pct of larger markets, he forecast.

In Britain, which liberalised in 2006, competitors such as UK Mail and TNT Post had gained a 10 pct market share in terms of “upstream” volumes collected from customers but there was still no major competitor to Royal Mile for “last-mile” deliveries to businesses and consumers, Dieke said. In Sweden, where the market was opened in 1993, competitor CityMail still only had about 10 pct of the market. In Finland, which liberalised in 1997, high entry barriers meant there was no real competitor to Itella. In the Netherlands, which along with Slovakia might open its market before the official EU-wide liberalisation date of January 2011, competitors Selektmail and Sandd had gained 12 pct of the market despite TNT’s remaining monopoly, he noted.

Iain McLure, CEO of Spring Global Mail, criticised European postal operators for the repeated delays to liberalisation in recent years. “How long does the postal sector need to get prepared for competition?” he asked. In future, postal operators would have to focus on offering products in line with customer demand, better customer service and opportunities to achieve cost savings, the experienced postal manger forecast.

Spring, the TNT/Royal Mail/Singapore Post subsidiary, regularly used alternatives to national postal operators in some markets in order to provide quality services and lower costs, McLure pointed out. But he stressed: “As a broker, we are more of a customer (to postal operators) than a competitor.” Spring had been profitable for the past eight years, he noted.

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TNT and trade unions agree on collective labour agreement

Posted by | Jul 18, 2008 | |

With reference to the press release from May 2008, TNT and trade unions ABVAKABO FNV, BVPP, CNV Publieke Zaak and VPP have signed the new collective labour agreement for TNT. Trade union members have accepted the agreement in principle reached by negotiators and TNT on 23 May. The new collective labour agreement will be in effect from 1 April 2008 to 1 April 2009.

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TNT launches road express between Argentina and Brazil

Posted by | Jul 18, 2008 | |

TNT has launched an international road express service between Argentina and Brazil under its plans to create a cross-border road network in South America.

The new service will be provided by TNT Mercurio Argentina, a new unit of the Brazilian road express operator acquired in early 2007, and will be initially offered in the northern province of Cordoba, TNT Express Argentina said in an online newsletter.

The road transport company will operate out of the TNT Cordoba office, targeting customers with exports and imports to/from Brazil who use full-load or consolidated freight services. TNT Mercúrio Argentina will also link TNT’s existing offices in Mar del Plata, Rosario, Mendoza, Córdoba, Salta and Buenos Aires to create a domestic road transport network offering door-to-door deliveries.

The province of Córdoba lies north-west of Buenos Aires and on the main transportation routes between southern Brazil and Chile. The city of Córdoba, the second-largest city in Argentina, is a major industrial centre, including automotive and hi-tech manufacturing.

TNT Express Argentina already offers international time-definite air express services and domestic transportation of documents and parcels. In Brazil, TNT Mercurio employs 7,000 staff, has a fleet of 2,631 vehicles and has a network of 110 depots.

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