Local firms become ‘freight-sensitive’ A refuge in a troubled world MALTA\\\


Local importers are becoming more price sensitive and freight rates oſten determine their purchasing patterns and trading partners,


says Malta-based


Sullivan Shipping. Retailers and distributors are


constantly shopping around and whereas traditionally they would have a couple of suppliers, today they would oſten import from different countries and sources, searching for the lowest costs, says director, Matthew Sullivan. “There is a lot of shopping around by companies to get better deals. This coupled with the need to hold less stock is increasing the demand for groupage cargo .” This is reflected in Malta’s


figures for container and trailer imports and exports. In 2013, there was no increase in containerised imports, although there was a 13% rise in exports, mostly due to the return to some sort of normality in Libya (2012 had seen a pronounced dip on that trade route). There was a rise in Asian traffic this year, reflecting the changing buying patterns, although southern Europe remains a strong trading partner for Malta. But trailer import traffic was


up 14%, mainly because it is the preferred mode for groupage and groupage best suits importers buying small quantities on a just in time basis. Certainly, Sullivan Shipping is


satisfied with the progress made by its own trailer services, now in their second year following its link-up with French-owned Vectorys. The main market for the service is in fact Italy, accounting for 60%, followed by the UK and then France, Belgium, Germany (which tends to be a full load rather than groupage market) and the Netherlands. Compared


trailers are faster


flexible and lend themselves to multiple pick-ups and


Trailer imports are up, on the back of a groupage boom.


customer consolidations or consolidations of a specific type of traffic. “It’s faster and today, due to the development of the services in Malta, more controlled,” says Sullivan. “We can offer multiple pick up and consolidated services where all the individual


groupages can


be combined in one trailer for a single large importer, combining the flexibility of grouapage cargo with the security given by full loads.” But there has been an increase


in container exports this year, Sullivan continues. The business to Libya is quite brisk again and Maltese-based operators are in a good position to serve it because of the island’s frequent services to the country – about ten a fortnight or close on one a day taking container and ro ro services together. Sullivan is planning a push


into airfreight, to Europe and the Far East primarily. There is traffic such as electronics, car parts and pharmaceuticals and airfreight would help provide a complete service. Another Sullivan innovation is


with containers, and more


the BoxNotch service for Malta- based internet shoppers that is now in its second year. Buyers who find that their internet seller either refuses to ship to Malta or who does so only for an uncompetitive price can quote Sullivan’s UK warehouse as the delivery address and Sullivan will move the shipment from there to Malta.


of


While there are a number such services,


BoxNotch’s


strength is that it can offer a cheaper if slightly slower container-based service for larger and heavier items and there is no minimum price, as is normal with most groupage services.


A faster air-based


service is available where the customer


requires the goods


more urgently. And while most customers are private buyers, there are an increasing amount of business users, says Sullivan. Internet shopping has vastly


increased the range of goods available in Malta as well as reducing prices; it has also made available more specialised items – specific car parts or items for hobbyists – that in the past were not available at all. Sullivan plans


to extend


BoxNotch, perhaps to Italy or other parts of southern Europe. There is also the question of


whether Malta could become a site for internet fulfilment for its region. It could be the next stage in the evolution of the business, Sullivan suggests; certainly, the island has a favourable tax and VAT environment, a well-educated workforce and advanced communications systems. What could hold things back are somewhat higher postage and courier rates compared with other European countries, although warehousing and logistics costs in Malta are lower than on the Continent and in the UK.


Marsa-based forwarder Rabelink is offering an alternative for Maltese importers from the Far East with container groupage services via the hub-port of Barcelona rather than direct into Malta Freeport. Transit time is a little longer as boxes have to be


transhipped in the Spanish port onto Maersk or CMA CGM vessels, but rates are somewhat cheaper, says general manager, Julian Naudi. Rabelink is also offering a


Spain-Malta container groupage service in conjunction with its


agent there, Transglory. “Price- wise, it does have an advantage over trailer services from Spain and the transit time is not that much slower, so it’s doing really well,” Naudi comments. He adds that he would also like to develop his UK/Malta business.


Malta continues to attract people from all over the world seeking a new life in the sun, says William Vella, managing director of removal specialist TransPak. Italy’s economic woes have led to an upsurge in migrants and South Africa’s continuing high crime rate has ensured a steady out-flow from there; Malta’s sunny climate is clearly an attraction for people from both these countries.


The Maltese Government


is also in the early stages of putting together a controversial citizenship scheme that would allow wealthy individuals from outside the EU to effectively buy a Maltese passport – for themselves and their families. However, all the comings


and goings haven’t led to a massive upsurge in removals, says William Vella although the number of requests for


Issue 4 2014 - Freight Business Journal


35


quotations has increased. Movement of artwork and


antiquities is TransPak’s other staple and this is currently also at a low ebb. Malta is to be European Capital of Culture in 2018 and there are a number of other events coming up, but for the moment the museums and art galleries are concentrating on rebuilding and refurbishing, rather than shipping items in.


Malta forwarder teams up with Barca


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