Cargo volume at Taiwan Taoyuan International Airport from January to October rose 23.3 percent annually to reach 2.32 million tonnes thanks to booming exports of electronic products and increased consumption in the holiday season, Taiwan International Airport Corp (TIAC) said on Tuesday.
The airport ranked No. 2 in the Asia-Pacific region in terms of cargo growth over the period, TIAC Property Development Department director Tom Chen (陳慶隆) said.
The facility is expected to process a total of 2.8 million tonnes of cargo this year, which would be an increase of 20 percent compared with last year.
Photo: CNA
The airport’s cargo volume has registered double-digit percentage growth since July last year, Chen said.
However, growth has plateaued since October, with the airport processing about 240,000 tonnes of cargo per month, he added.
“Christmas and Lunar New Year holidays are traditionally peak shopping times. Moreover, surging exports of electronic products also boosted the amount of air cargo handled at the airport. We expect that imports and exports of air cargo will continue to grow until the first quarter of next year,” Chen said.
Some businesses have begun to transport heavier or bulkier goods, such as bathtubs, spinning bikes and tiles, via air freight, he said.
“Many businesses have switched to air transport as the global supply chain has been disrupted by the COVID-19 pandemic. Congestion at seaports around the world and a container shortage have also led to high demand for air cargo services,” Chen said.
“Even though transport fees could be higher than prices of the goods delivered, businesses would prefer to fulfill terms of their contracts and deliver goods via air transport, even though this means they would sustain financial losses,” he said.
Prior to the pandemic, air freight fees were about 12 times those of sea freight, he said, adding that it is now about three times higher.
The company would monitor demand for air cargo services and determine whether the airport has the capacity to meet demand.
“To expedite cargo handling at the airport, we will expand the space to load and unload cargo, and coordinate with logistics service operators to optimize the tally operation,” he said.
The Aviation Police Bureau would help guide the logistics vehicles entering and leaving the airport to ensure smooth customs clearance and timely delivery of goods, he added.
The airport has sufficient stands for passenger and cargo planes, he said, adding that it would flexibly arrange the use of aircraft stands if air cargo volumes continue to rise.
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