From the incoming president on down, Taiwan\u2019s political elite has been trying hard to project an image of \u201cbusiness as usual.\u201d Faced with angry accusations of aiming to steer for formal independence from the Chinese mainland, the political leadership in Taipei has pledged its commitment to maintain stable cross-straits relations. Likewise, business leaders have been reassuring their partners that their involvement in China will not suffer from the mounting political tensions, nor from Chinese efforts to catch up with Taiwan\u2019s edge in technology.
\nTaiwanese companies, meanwhile, have been going upmarket, leveraging their research and development (R&D) capabilities, noted Kenny Mok, managing director of DHL Global Forwarding Taiwan. \u201cChina may be moving upstream, but given the competitive edge of Taiwan, the Taiwanese companies would still have a stronger advantage and are likely to remain as the source of high-end technology products,\u201d he explained. \u201cBut as the technology matures, the production of these products will move to other manufacturing countries for mass production.\u201d
\nThe new government wants to shift the economy from an \u201cefficiency-driven model to an innovation-driven one.\u201d At the same time, Taiwanese firms look for opportunities elsewhere (such as Hon Hai Precision Industry\u2019s takeover of Sharp) or in other sectors altogether. Mok notes that production of solar cells and panels has shown strong growth, and so has the pharmaceutical sector.
\nEVA Air certainly sees opportunities in the latter, having introduced a cold chain service targeting pharmaceuticals, as well as high-end food and high-tech semiconductor components. Its cold chain network now covers 18 cities around the globe, according to a representative of the airline.
\nAt the beginning of this year, EVA retired one of its converted 747-400DBSFs, which marked the first step in its freighter fleet transformation, announced last summer, when management placed an order for five 777-200Fs. At this point, the carrier has three 747-400Fs and four more BDSFs, which are expected to be retired when the 777s enter service, said the EVA representative.
\nMok hailed the 777 ambitions. \u201cThis is a welcome sign and signals confidence in the cargo industry,\u201d he said.
\nEVA is also boosting its bellyhold capacity. Last November it placed an order for twenty-four 787-10s and two 777-300ERs, adding to an earlier order for thirteen 777-300ERs. Management has signaled its intention to deploy these planes on medium- and long-haul routes to Southeast Asia, Oceania and North America.
\nEVA\u2019s cargo capacity in Europe has been diminishing. Last year, it scrapped its last remaining European freighter route (to Frankfurt). However, the carrier has made a determined push to step up its presence in the trans-Pacific arena this year. The airline is set to launch service to Chicago in the fall and will increase frequency on routes to Houston and New York. Altogether, its trans-Pacific schedule will rise to 77 weekly frequencies from the current 65.
\nIts freighters fly 18 times a week across the Pacific, serving five North American gateways. Here, management is looking to flexibility rather than a capacity build-up. \u201cWe will adjust our freighter flights to accommodate market conditions by continuing to optimize our cargo aircraft fleet and modify routes to produce maximum profits,\u201d commented the EVA representative. He added that eastbound volumes dropped since the start of the year and have remained unstable.
\nTechnology has been the lifeblood of the Taiwanese economy. According to IDC Taiwan, the local arm of market intelligence provider International Data Corp., Taiwan accounted for more than 90 percent of global shipments of computer servers and server motherboards last year. Electronics makes up 40 percent of the island\u2019s exports and 15 percent of its GDP.
\nMuch of the assembly work is carried out in mainland China. Beijing has left no doubt that it wants its industry to move upstream, challenging the position of Taiwanese firms. However, it will take some time before they get there, and Beijing\u2019s targets keep moving.
\nDespite a decline in electronics exports, Mok said he remains upbeat, chiefly regarding Asia. \u201cWhile we have seen a global slowdown in the demand for electronic products, the high-tech sector will remain a key industry for Taiwan as the country continues to export raw materials and electronic components \u2013 with a large proportion within Asia \u2013 for production and assembly,\u201d he said. \u201cAs such, the airfreight flows have been stable in Taiwan as intra-Asia shipments remain the bulk of the movement.\u201d
\nHe said he sees more concern for Taiwan\u2019s airborne exports to the region from modal competition, emphasizing DHL Global Forwarding\u2019s own multimodal network for North Asia, which includes a marine link between Taiwan and the mainland.
\n\u201cThis connection links the Taichung port to Shanghai, with a rail link to Warsaw via Suzhou, which also serves as a base for over 10,000 Taiwan-funded export-oriented enterprises,\u201d he said. \u201cAs a cost-effective shipping alternative, our multimodal service offering has generated a lot of interest among customers and businesses in Taiwan, and we are confident that demand for the service will continue to grow tremendously.\u201d
\nSource: aircargoworld<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
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