The Russia-Ukraine conflict is expected to negatively affect global air cargo markets as airspace closures sever many countries' direct connections to Russia, although it is too soon to assess the magnitude of the impact, the International Air Transport Association (Iata) said.
Cargo carried to, from and within Russia accounted for just 0.6 per cent of global air cargo in 2021, so the overall impact on markets is expected to be low, Iata said in its monthly cargo update on Thursday.
“We can expect cargo markets to be affected by the Russia-Ukraine conflict,” Willie Walsh, Iata's Director General, said. “Sanction-related shifts in manufacturing and economic activity, rising oil prices and geopolitical uncertainty are converging. Capacity is expected to come under greater pressure and rates are likely to rise. To what extent, however, it is still too early to predict.”
Strong air cargo demand was one of the few bright spots for the global aviation industry battered for two years by the Covid-19 pandemic. Russia's military offensive in Ukraine — which has triggered sanctions on the country — and skyrocketing oil prices are likely to throw a spanner in the works.
International airlines are suffering from a sharp rise in oil prices and the additional cost of rerouting flights to avoid Russian airspace, which is expected to drive up ticket prices and air cargo rates.
Oil prices surged past $130 a barrel on Tuesday, their highest level since 2008, after US President Joe Biden announced that the US would ban crude, gas and coal imports from Russia.
Prices eased as the UAE envoy to the US said the country supports increasing oil output in tight market conditions.
Global air cargo markets recorded slower growth in January as supply chain disruptions, capacity constraints and deterioration in economic conditions for the sector dampened demand, Iata said.
Global freight demand, measured in cargo tonne-kilometres, was up 2.7 per cent year-on-year in January, the latest report showed. That was down from the 9.3 per cent growth recorded in December 2021.
Capacity was 11.4 per cent above January 2021 levels. Although in positive territory, capacity remains constrained, 8.9 per cent below January 2019 levels, Iata said.
“Demand growth of 2.7 per cent in January was below expectation, following the 9.3 per cent recorded in December. This likely reflects a shift towards the more normal growth rate of 4.9 per cent expected for this year,” Mr Walsh said.
Middle East airlines recorded a 4.6 per cent annual decrease in cargo volumes in January and a drop of 2.2 per cent in performance compared with the previous month.
This was due to a deterioration in traffic on several key routes such as Middle East-Asia and Middle East-North America, Iata said.
Capacity was up 6.2 per cent compared with January 2021 but remained constrained compared with pre-Covid-19 levels, down 11.8 per cent from the same month in 2019.
Cargo volumes for African airlines, meanwhile, increased 12.4 per cent in January 2022, compared with January 2021. The region was the strongest performer, according to Iata, with capacity at 13 per cent above January 2021 levels.
COMPANY PROFILE
Name: Akeed
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Launch year: 2018
Number of employees: 40
Sector: Online food delivery
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UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
ELIO
Starring: Yonas Kibreab, Zoe Saldana, Brad Garrett
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Earth under attack: Cosmic impacts throughout history
- 4.5 billion years ago: Mars-sized object smashes into the newly-formed Earth, creating debris that coalesces to form the Moon
- 66 million years ago: 10km-wide asteroid crashes into the Gulf of Mexico, wiping out over 70 per cent of living species – including the dinosaurs.
- 50,000 years ago: 50m-wide iron meteor crashes in Arizona with the violence of 10 megatonne hydrogen bomb, creating the famous 1.2km-wide Barringer Crater
- 1490: Meteor storm over Shansi Province, north-east China when large stones “fell like rain”, reportedly leading to thousands of deaths.
- 1908: 100-metre meteor from the Taurid Complex explodes near the Tunguska river in Siberia with the force of 1,000 Hiroshima-type bombs, devastating 2,000 square kilometres of forest.
- 1998: Comet Shoemaker-Levy 9 breaks apart and crashes into Jupiter in series of impacts that would have annihilated life on Earth.
-2013: 10,000-tonne meteor burns up over the southern Urals region of Russia, releasing a pressure blast and flash that left over 1600 people injured.
Moral education needed in a 'rapidly changing world'
Moral education lessons for young people is needed in a rapidly changing world, the head of the programme said.
Alanood Al Kaabi, head of programmes at the Education Affairs Office of the Crown Price Court - Abu Dhabi, said: "The Crown Price Court is fully behind this initiative and have already seen the curriculum succeed in empowering young people and providing them with the necessary tools to succeed in building the future of the nation at all levels.
"Moral education touches on every aspect and subject that children engage in.
"It is not just limited to science or maths but it is involved in all subjects and it is helping children to adapt to integral moral practises.
"The moral education programme has been designed to develop children holistically in a world being rapidly transformed by technology and globalisation."
Bio
Born in Dubai in 1994
Her father is a retired Emirati police officer and her mother is originally from Kuwait
She Graduated from the American University of Sharjah in 2015 and is currently working on her Masters in Communication from the University of Sharjah.
Her favourite film is Pacific Rim, directed by Guillermo del Toro
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
How does ToTok work?
The calling app is available to download on Google Play and Apple App Store
To successfully install ToTok, users are asked to enter their phone number and then create a nickname.
The app then gives users the option add their existing phone contacts, allowing them to immediately contact people also using the application by video or voice call or via message.
Users can also invite other contacts to download ToTok to allow them to make contact through the app.
No.6 Collaborations Project
Ed Sheeran (Atlantic)
