Report: Forwarding market sees “stellar” growth in 2006; DHL No. 1
The global freight forwarding market witnessed another year of “stellar” growth in 2006 with DHL Global Forwarding the largest company in terms of revenue, London-based Transport Intelligence said in a new report.The research, contained in Global Freight Forwarding 2007, indicates that although the growth rate was not quite as fast as 2005, it confounded expectations of slowing trade volumes.
Steady economic growth in Europe supported Asia Pacific trades, while the U.S. economy did not decelerate as much as feared. Intra-Asian trade was also a key driving force, and has become the focus of many forwarders’ development strategies, the report said.
Revenues in the sea freight market were down slightly compared to 2005 but still showed the highest gain at 15 percent. Air freight revenues rose 12 percent, the same rate as a year earlier. In terms of overall forwarding revenues — air, sea and customs brokerage — DHL Global Forwarding ranked No. 1, followed by Kuehne + Nagel and Schenker/BAX Global.
“The freight forwarding industry is enjoying a period of unparalleled growth and prosperity, benefiting from the globalizing world economy,” said John Manners-Bell, the report’s author. “The potential for future profits is high, and this will inevitably lead to further M&A (mergers and acquisitions) activity. Private equity is likely to play an important part in this process.”
