Air freight groups and airlines rush to increase flights out of China

Air freight groups and airlines, which only recently cut flights to China amid weak tourist demand, are scrambling to reroute planes and cash in on elevated freight rates out of the country ahead of Black Friday and the Christmas shopping season. Strong growth in demand for cheap online goods from Chinese ecommerce groups and the rising use of air freight amid disruption in the Red Sea are threatening to overwhelm the already strained rapid delivery market before Christmas, causing air freight rates to jump. The freight rate for flying goods from Asia to the US has surged, with the average spot price in October up 49% from a year ago to $5.46 a kilogram, according to market analytics firm Xeneta. Rates from Asia to Europe rose 25% over the same period. The jump in air freight demand comes as China-founded ecommerce groups respond to western consumers’ appetite for cheap goods. Many of their shipments are sent direct to consumers by air, taking advantage of import duty exemptions on shipments below a certain price. US and EU lawmakers are looking to clamp down on the flow of imports from China using this duty “loophole”, with the White House proposing to exclude a range of goods from the exemption in September, while Brussels has discussed scrapping a €150 threshold under which items can be bought duty free.<br/>