China Daily Hong Kong Edition:HACTL eyeing a slice of Asia’s e-commerce pie

On the heels of Alibaba’s record $9.3-billion sales on “Singles Day” (Nov 11), reflecting the mega growth of e-commerce in China and the Asia-Pacific, air-cargo industry executives are candid about the need to embrace a new business model and ramp up service levels.
Vivien Lau, managing director of Hong Kong Air Cargo Industry Services Ltd (HACIS), told China Daily that the “revolution of e-commerce” has injected new life into the airfreight industry.
According to web design firm Go-Globe, e-commerce spending in Asia is set to surpass half a trillion US dollars by the end of this year. More than 36.2 percent of the worldwide business-to-customer e-commerce has come from Asia so far this year, and the figure is expected to hit 39.7 percent by 2016. The huge demand is paying handsome dividends for major international courier companies like DHL Express, SF Express and UPS, and air-cargo companies can also bid for a big piece of the pie, Lau noted.
HACIS’s parent company Hong Kong Air Cargo Terminals Ltd (HACTL), which has handled 1.3 million tons of cargo at the world’s largest cargo airport up to September this year, is focusing more on the general mainstream cargo in response to the region’s huge appetite for e-commerce and the delivery challenges that come with it.
Unlike the traditionally super-fast, yet highly expensive express cargo, the general air cargo — fast yet relatively cheap — could be something of a new mode of air transport that HACTL has been creating, said Lau.
However, striking a balance between rates and the speed of delivery remains a big hurdle for carriers to overcome as online buyers are generally speed-sensitive, yet are only willing to pay modestly for freight transport.
Lau said HACTL’s talent pool — one of the company’ competitive edges — has supported its bold move in arresting modal shift and driving new efficiencies for the business.
“Our long-serving staff, with 20 to 30 years’ experience in the air-cargo industry, enables us to consistently deliver quality services,” she said.
The company also spares no effort in reducing redundancy and tapping state-of-the-art technology, such as in-house development software.
“As a logistics provider serving the sector, it’s a matter of adopting a similar mindset and business mode with e-commerce, which attracts a host of buyers by providing good products with attractive prices,” Lau said.
She said she was very much looking forward to the completion of the mega Hong Kong-Zhuhai-Macau Bridge, which was originally due to go into operation in 2016, but has now been postponed to 2017.
“The bridge will open up another new transportation network in the western part of the Pearl River Delta by connecting three out of five airports in the region,” Lau said, adding that the remaining two airports — at Shenzhen and Guangzhou — will always be the trading partners with Hong Kong’s airport.
Instead of regarding its mainland counterparts as formidable competitors, Lau said HACTL wants collaboration.
Such initiatives are evident by the SuperLink China Direct road solution developed by HACIS, which operates cross-border trucking services linking mainly Shenzhen and Guangzhou.
“I believe the link between air and road is the trend for e-commerce,” Lau said.
http://www.chinadailyasia.com/2014-11/22/content_15194723.html