I could see several reasons for the slow down of sea-air via Dubai . One is for sure the slow steaming adopted by the shipping lines which extends the transit time . From Hong Kong to Jebel Ali , it used ot be 11 days . Now its 12-13 days , sometimes even more days are consumed. The only ocean line (which I dont want to mention the name ) who used to offer a good sea-air service on the ocean leg, has also lost its motivation to keep the commitment on transit times . On the other hand , the retailers have changed the way they hold inventory . Less inventory in shops drive more air if the market picks up. But where have we seen the market picking up in recent days .
The latest buzz is everyone is rushing to do rail freight from China to Europe via Siberian route . China has its ambitions to control the freight from China to Europe , therefore pouring billions to develop this mode of transport . However in my opinion , a very dependable , capacity full filled product is at least 5 years away. I have often argued with people who says , rail is better than sea-air . I agree to a point that it stops at a theoretical point , but not go in to practicality . The reasons are simple . Today there are 3 train hubs in China , Suzhou , west China and North China . The trains line up the cargo at the western China to be carried on to Europe . A 40feet container could cost from a shanghai factory to a distribution centre in France aprox USD 8000 . Its far below the sea-air rates that are available in the market. The maximum length of this train until it reached the European rail standards if only 800 meters . Just calculate and see how many 40 feet containers can you carry every 2 days to Europe . aprox 45-48 containers a train ? I agree that its viable right now as the market is so low and there is no demand . But no one hopes this export market from China to Europe will stay like this for ever . When the market picks up , can everyone get space on a train that carries 45 containers ? think about the demand and supply ? I conclude this point of argument by admitting that rail from China to Europe is a good progress and a great achievement . However its not yet ready to take away the sea-air product via Dubai and other hubs . Once the rail products reach multiple journeys a day to europe and perhaps double stacking the containers , then yet , it could be a good alternative . Not until then .
One the other hand , people who believe in multimodal products like me , will always educate the customers about the benefits of sea-air , air-air and air-sea products . There is no limit to the way you can move freight on multimodal methods as long as you can be creative and knows how to ensure the product works .
I sincerely hope that Dubai government will take measures to speed up the sea-air transshipment process and reduce costs , allowing the freight forwarders to bring in more transshipment cargo to Dubai. Simplifying the process on how Dubai cooperates with Sharjah in terms of transshipment customs , open many possibilities . can UAE government influence the shipping lines to improve the transit time and ensure there is a dependable Ocean capacity and lead time guarantee to jebel Ali ? this could improve the transit times .
Times have come to be innovative in how you do sea-air products .
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