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Changi Airport Group extends support to air cargo partners

Direct News Source

25-Mar-2013 Changi Airport Group (CAG) announced today that it is extending support to its air cargo partners under the Changi Airport Growth Initiative. This is in light of the continued tough operating environment faced by the cargo industry which has seen dampened demand for airfreight worldwide and persistently high fuel prices.

From 1 April 2013 to 31 December 2013, all scheduled freighter flights at Changi Airport will enjoy a 50% landing fee rebate. This will be adjusted to 30% for the first quarter of 2014. In addition, for the one-year period from 1 April 2013, cargo tenants leasing CAG cargo facilities at the Changi Airfreight Centre will continue to enjoy rebates based on cargo tonnage handled, up to 20% of their rentals. Together with growth incentives available to freighter airlines, CAG's support package for the cargo industry will amount to more than S$17 million over the next 12 months.

While passenger traffic at Changi Airport has grown strongly, registering a record 51.2 million in 2012, total cargo throughput at Changi declined 3.2% to 1.81 million tonnes last year. According to the International Air Transport Association, a sharp slowdown in world trade growth and shifts in commodity mix favouring sea transport have further decreased global air cargo demand. These factors resulted in a 1.5% contraction of air freight markets in 2012

1. In Singapore, the economy grew by 1.3%, largely due to weaknesses in the externally-oriented sectors such as manufacturing as well as wholesale and retail trade2.

For the first two months of 2013, cargo tonnage handled at Changi Airport declined 5.0% to 267,000 tonnes. While general demand for air freight is currently low, there is nevertheless growth potential in specific cargo segments such as pharmaceuticals and perishables. CAG will continue to work with the industry partners to stimulate growth in these sectors, as well as in traffic to emerging economies like Africa and Southeast Asia.

Mr Lee Seow Hiang, CAG's Chief Executive Officer, said: "Our partners in the cargo sector continue to face strong headwinds from the global economic weakness. We hope, with this support package, to alleviate their situation. We will monitor the market environment closely and work with our partners to ride through the challenging period and at the same time try to find growth opportunities in targeted cargo segments for Changi Airport."

Mr Eiji Iwata, Nippon Cargo Airlines' General Manager, Singapore, said, "We are glad that CAG understands the challenges that the industry is facing and we definitely welcome this initiative to help moderate our operating costs. We are confident of CAG's commitment to provide adequate support in both good and challenging times."

Mr Steven Lee, Chairman of the Singapore Air Cargo Agents Association, which represents freight forwarders in the industry, said, "The extension of the cargo incentive scheme is timely for more air cargo agents to sustain their operations and benefit from enhancements in the package."