Air cargo volumes between Asia Pacific and Europe have dropped, with ex China volumes taking a hit and ex Hong Kong volumes continuing to decline.
For Asia Pacific as a whole, volumes to Europe were down 10% week on week and 15% year on year, shows figures from WorldACD Market Data.
Volumes from e-commerce hotspot Hong Kong were down 23% year on year, after four consecutive week on week declines, according to the week 28 (6-12 July) figures from WorldACD.
The decline followed the end of the EU’s de minimis exemption and its introduction of a temporary €3 customs duty on low-value parcels imported from outside the EU as of 1 July.
This decline in volumes reflected “the impact of the removal by the EU of de minimis import tariff exemptions since 1 July”, said WorldACD.
EU member states agreed in December to introduce the customs duty charge per item on parcels valued below €150. This is intended to bridge the gap until the EU Customs Data Hub is launched in 2028.
In addition to a drop in air cargo volumes from Hong Kong, air cargo volumes from e-commerce hub China were down 13% week on week and 15% year on year.
When the US removed the de minimis exemption for goods from China and Hong Kong in May last year, capacity and volumes on the transpacific fell.
Trade on the lane shifted to Asia-Europe, but eventually China-US volumes largely recovered and Asia-Europe trade was also sustained.
Meanwhile, the most recent data also shows volumes from Taiwan to Europe were down 24% week on week.
WorldACD noted that in terms of week on week impact, typhoon Bavi “particularly affected capacity and chargeable weight from Taiwan and to a lesser extent volumes and capacity from China and other parts of East Asia”.
