50 FedEx volunteers take part in coastal clean up

Along with DHL's upcoming global volunteer day, FedEx Express is also demonstrating its commitment to social responsibility with "FedEx Cares Week".  The initiative comprises a week of volunteering between September 7th and 15th,  in which employees of the company in 11 Asia Pacific markets are encouraged to give back to their communities.

One of the first activities of the initiative saw 50 FedEx volunteers helping out at a coastal clean up project in Taiwan last Saturday 7th September. Along with with the Jane Goodall Institute - the international wildlife and conservation organisation - the volunteers removed over 120 kg of rubbish from the Chao-Jing park in Keelung. The park is home to many wild species but has been blighted of late by debris including cigarettes, cans and plastic bags. As well as improving the living conditions to the wildlife on the coastal region, it is also hoped that the clean up will raise awareness about coastal conservation. 

Managing Director of FedEx Express Taiwan Michael Chu commented: "the FedEx network includes not only wings in the sky, but also wheels on the ground and keels in the water. That's why why we are committed to minimizing our environmental footprint through various environmental sustainability efforts."

It is anticipated that over 1,000 volunteers will commit over 4,000 hours in 36 different activities throughout the week. 

East Asian air cargo suffers from weak demand

Recently published performance figures for Cathay Pacific - the flag carrier of Hong Kong - and China Airlines and EVA Airways - the two largest carriers of Taiwan - indicate that the air cargo slump is set to continue.

123,805 tonnes of cargo and mail were carried by Cathay Pacific and Dragonair in April,  a year-on-year decrease of 0.6%. Capacity grew by 1.5% but cargo and mail revenue tonne kilometres fell 2.4%. China Airlines also registered a 1.65 percent drop in accumulated sales figures for the first 4 months of 2013 compared to 2012. EVA Airways, Taiwan's second largest carrier, saw a 3.35 percent drop in revenue. 

Cathay Pacific's CEO John Slosar remains positive about his company's adaptability. In an interview with Air Cargo Week, he stated, "We didn't anticipate the markets being down for such an extended period, and we have had to be nimble and flexible in our response, cutting back freighter capacity in line with demand at the same time as trying to develop new markets. Our cargo teams have been doing a great job in this regard. We have adapted well to the short-term challenges and at the same time have been looking to the future".

Nevertheless, Slosar's optimism about the future for the air cargo industry is quelled by his doubts about the global economy as a whole. He commented, "[The industry] has been in a slump for more than two years now- an unprecedented length of time - and there is still no indication that things are about to change for the better. There are few positive signs of the world's economy getting back on a firmer footing and the simple fact is that cargo demand won't see any sustained uptick until that happens."

FedEx Express Taiwan shipments now subject to late cut-off times

Starting this month, FedEx Express customers shipping goods from Taiwan to Europe or Africa can now benefit from extended delivery cut-off times. This affects consignments sent via the FedEx parcel services, FedEx International Priority (IP) and FedEx International Economy (IE).

‪ (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

The courier company hopes that its customers will “enjoy more time to prepare [their] shipments.” Michael Chu, FedEx Taiwan managing director, confirmed that 

“despite a challenging economic environment in Europe, Taiwan remains a strong trading partner with the EU and trade between the two markets in 2011 climbed more than 10% year-on-year.”

Last year US$2.9 million worth of goods alone were shipped from Taiwan to Africa and Europe positions itself amongst the Taiwan’s top 5 largest business partners.

Source: FedEx Express Taiwan, Post & Parcel