Business Day Courier Services Insight (March 17 2022)
INSIGHTS
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SGlobeflight, among others, says the express logistics industry plays a critical role in supply chains across sea, land and air, ensuring time-sensitive commodities reach their intended destinations quickly and efficiently. Prior to the Covid-19 pandemic, SAs express logistics industry was behind the global curve insofar as e-commerce transactions were concerned, says Marshall. Courier delivery vehicles often battled to make door-to-door home deliveries on the first attempt, often
because nobody was at home to take delivery of the item and, in the case of estates, because vehicles were refused access.
“As drivers often only managed to make the delivery on the second or even third attempt, the cost of providing the service was expensive, explains Marshall.
The pandemic acted as the big disruptor, creating an environment that was more conducive to deliveries.
“Suddenly everybody was at home. Homeowners in estates pushed for their estates to give courier drivers access so that deliveries could be made. Technology started to become more user friendly, allowing senders and recipients to track the progress of their delivery.
The pandemic resulted in rapid growth in some areas of the industry, including business-to-consumer home deliveries which saw 60% growth. It also resulted in the growth of e-commerce. Fast forward two years and e-commerce and express logistics have become a standardised product and the
and
Providing logistics for a global reach
industry is maturing,” says Marshall, adding that growing volumes mean that prices have stabilised. That s not to say the industry is without its challenges, among which is inflation and poorly maintained road infrastructure which means that delivery vehicles frequently suffer damage. Rapidly rising fuel costs are also a significant variable which the industry has to take into consideration. The pandemic also saw a rise in e-commerce. Many courier companies and even road freight businesses started offering deliveries of grocery
retailers.
Expansion plan puts firm on path to being a ‘game-changer’
In the first phase of its global expansion strategy, SkyNet South Africa recently acquired SkyNet s operations in the UK, Germany, Belgium, Mozambique. Its expansion strategy is
to international lanes, reveals Tommy Erasmus, CEO of Skynet Worldwide Express. “We plan to remain proudly South African and will continue to
the
culture inherent in
operations. SkyNet s market share is significant within the European countries in which the company operates where
player within the e-commerce space. The company also provides logistic solutions to a number of
and
e-tailers that are looking
and
The efficiencies realised from the acquisition will provide cost-effective opportunities our customers can leverage to support their international business growth, says Erasmus. The combined offering resulting from the acquisition makes SkyNet a global player of scale while retaining the high levels of innovation and agility which are core to our operations. Our ambition is to become the game-changers in the express courier parcel market, he adds.
Being a game-changer, he explains, requires ongoing innovation and re-invention to stay ahead of the pack. One of these areas is the e-commerce industry. With an increased appetite for online shopping and a prediction that SAs e-commerce transactions will soar to R225bn by 2025, e-tailers are looking to expand their brands into the global markets. As an independentlyowned network and with a footprint in more than 170 countries SkyNet is well positioned to support the growth opportunities presented to e-tailers, not only with domestic services but also through international service options, says Erasmus. Diederick Stopforth, commercial executive of SkyNet Worldwide Express, adds that solving customers pain points is the business’s biggest priority. In the e-commerce industry
these pain points often include IT integration solutions, warehousing, providing the appropriate payment gateways and, most importantly, the last mile delivery. We are able to create solutions to solve these and other pain points, allowing our customers to focus on what s important to them growing their brand and their business, he says. In addition to providing the best-in-class solutions to the e-commerce industry, the company also continues to
approach with home, business, counter and contactless deliveries through various partners, including ADT Fidelity says Stopforth. Erasmus adds that one of the biggest benefits for customers is that they don t need to wait for IT solutions governed by red tape, but instead have on-tap solutions available. We
Garry Marshall more options.
Broken rice is nice for boars
as the price of maize soars
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prices of the world s most important stapleata timewhenglobalfood inflation is already hovering near record highs. Global cropimporters are scrambling for supplies after Russia s invasionof Ukraine severed grainshipments from thetwo countries,which together accountfor about25% of world wheat and
Grain pain: With the price of wheat soaring due to the war in Ukraine buyers are turning to low-quality rice to feed their animals, and some analysts say broken rice could be bought for human consumption if prices continue to rise. /Bloom
increase in demand for lowerqualityrice fromThailand s animal feed industry, said one trader in Bangkok. In fact, much of Thailand s broken rice is likely to be consumedin the domestic market.
wheat supplies
Mayank Bhardwaj
New Delhi Indiawill introducemeasuresto help the countrybecome a majorexporter ofhigh-quality wheat as importers scramble for supplies after Russia s invasion of
tradesata steep premium to wheat, but wheat’s blistering50% price surge from a month ago has sharply cut the difference between the twograins, and even madewheat moreexpensive than somelower grades of rice.
Benchmark food-graderice from Thai exportersmade its biggest weeklygain since October 2020 lastweek on the back of firmer food and feed demand, climbing5% toabout $421.50 a tonne. That s thehighest sincelast June,and sourcessayprices may keep rising if the disruption to Black Seaflows persists. Export prices fromVietnam and India have also climbed. There could be greater interest in broken rice for animal feed if the strength currently domi-
nating wheat andcorn markets persists, said Rome-basedFAO rice economist Shirley Mustafa. It is not just animal feed, there could also be a substitution in otheruse sectors,such as morepeopleturning toricefor their meals.
MAIZE CUP Chinahadbooked upto2-million tonnes ofUkrainian corn imports for this year, but most of those shipments arenow in jeopardy given thedisruption to Ukraine s logistics chains.
To replace those lost volumes, Chinais expectedto import about3-million tonnesof broken rice, up from about 2-million tonnes annuallyin the pasttwo years,said aBeijingbased rice trader. One importerin Guangdong is looking tobuy broken rice fromThailand, whileothers have recently bought Indian brokenrice forfeed, accordingto another source Demand forIndian broken ricehas goneup becauseof higher corn prices. Feed makers
are trying to replace corn with rice BV Krishna Rao, president of India s Rice Exporters Association, told Reuters. Prices of 100%Indian broken ricehave movedupto $320a tonne inMarch from$290 in February, he added. Further underpinning rice prices, feedmakers inThailand are also looking at using more broken rice to replace maize, pushing up domestic prices acrossthe country,said Bangkok-based traders. There istremendous
FOOD FEARS Global rice prices could rise furtherin thesecond quarterif wheatconsumers inIndia the second largest rice user after China switch to rice due to record high domestic wheat prices,which wouldaccelerate any declinein riceinventories, said Chookiat Ophaswongse, honorary president of Thai Rice Exporters Association. While global rice inventories are set to hita record 190-million tonnes in 2022, according to the USdepartment ofagriculture,global riceoutput isexpected to exceedworld consumption byless than5-million tonnesin2022, soasudden climb inworldwide demand could quickly startto deplete those inventoriesand reinforce bullish sentiment in the market. In turn, an increase in rice prices willintensify foodsecurityworriesfor someofthe poorestnations inAfricaand Asia,where millionsrelyon cheap availability of the staple. As of now, broken rice is mainlyfor thefeedsector, butas the war gets prolonged and buyers arenot able to gethold of adequate wheat, then it comes to food security, said one Singapore-based grains trader. /Reuters
