China’s air cargo carrier links with Freightos as bookings jump online

Bloomberg

China’s top air-cargo carrier is joining an online booking platform that’s revolutionising a $200 billion global market the way websites like Travelocity and Expedia digitised flight transactions for passengers more than two decades ago.
Freightos Group announced that the air-logistics arm of China Southern Airlines Co will offer real-time rates, capacity and bookings on WebCargo, a Barcelona-based unit of Freightos that currently connects to more than 3,500 freight forwarders. More than 30 airlines including Deutsche Lufthansa AG, American Airlines Group Inc, Air France-KLM and Emirates SkyCargo already list their services on WebCargo.
China Southern’s embrace of WebCargo — the first by a Chinese carrier — is a notable milestone for global supply chains needing smoother trade with the world’s No. 2 economy. It will give shippers of goods online access to freight availability from China Southern, which accounts for about 5% of all tonnage capacity worldwide.
According to Freightos, its latest air-cargo partnership also brings the amount of capacity accessible globally on WebCargo to 50%, up from zero four years ago. Airlines pay a fee for each booking.
Air freight generated an estimated $204.1 billion in revenue for commercial airlines in 2021, more than double the level in 2019, according to IATA. During the pandemic, it’s been one of the most volatile logistics links given its reliance on passenger traffic for capacity. Though transactions were moving to online platforms back in 2018, pandemic’s disruptions served as a catalyst for creating a bigger digital marketplace for air cargo.