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Tag: asia

  • Indonesia Posts Trade Surplus in October, Third Month in a Row

    Indonesia Posts Trade Surplus in October, Third Month in a Row

    Indonesia posted a trade surplus for a third straight month in October, the Central Statistics Agency said on Wednesday (15/11), as improved demand for commodities underpinned exports from Southeast Asia’s biggest economy.

    The trade surplus in October was $0.9 billion, the agency said. The surplus was supported by larger commodities shipments such as coal and metal, as well as manufactured goods.

    Demand from China continued to support Indonesian exports, the agency said.

    The surplus, however, shrunk from September’s surplus of $1.76 billion. Analysts polled by Reuters had expected a $1.63 billion surplus for the month.

    Exports rose 18.39 percent in October on an annual basis, compared with a 16.59 percent increase forecast in the poll.

    October exports were worth $15.09 billion.

    Meanwhile, imports jumped by 23.33 percent to $14.19 billion, picking up pace from a 13.13 percent rise in the previous month and compared to a forecast of 16 percent growth.

    The rise in imports was due to purchases of raw materials for industrial use.

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  • Alibaba seeks approval to buy stake in India’s BigBasket

    Alibaba seeks approval to buy stake in India’s BigBasket

    Chinese internet giant Alibaba is seeking Competition Commission of India (CCI) approval to acquire a stake in online grocery startup BigBasket.

    Financial details have not been disclosed in the CCI filing, which relates to “the acquisition and purchase of shares” of BigBasket parent Supermarket Grocery Supplies by Alibaba Singapore.

    Alibaba Group Holding and its Indian associate PayTM E-Commerce were reported in July as having a 60-day exclusive pact with BigBasket. There were also reports of BigBasket being in merger talks with rival Grofers.

    BigBasket has a presence in Bengaluru, Hyderabad, Pune, Mumbai, Chennai, Delhi-NCR, Kolkata, Jaipur, Punjab and Lucknow as well as four other cities, and has raised more than $200 million from investors.

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  • Parkson Retail Asia 1Q Net Loss Widens On Year As Sales Decline

    Parkson Retail Asia 1Q Net Loss Widens On Year As Sales Decline

    Parkson Retail Asia has had a lacklustre start to its fiscal year, its unaudited first-quarter figures show.

    Gross sales proceeds fell by 8.3 per cent year on year to S$202.4 million (US$148.9 million) for the quarter.

    Total merchandise sales generated $198.1 million, with concessionaire sales contributing 74.2 per cent, down from 77.9 per cent for the same period last year, and direct sales contributing the balance of 25.8 per cent.

    Attributable net losses to the owners of the company for the period, to September 30, reached $12.9 million. The group also had net current liabilities of $67.9 million at the end of September, the result of investments in new stores and ventures yet to reach optimal level. This was an increase of 22.5 per cent from its June 30 position.

    Same-store sales in Indonesia and Malaysia were impacted during the quarter by the absence of Lebaran/Hari Raya festival buying following a shift in the calendar.

    Malaysia remained challenging, with the country’s consumer sentiment index, at 77.1, continuing to register below the 100-point confidence threshold for the 13th consecutive quarter.

    Consumer spending appears to have also softened in Indonesia, where retail spending has been declining, while Parkson’s same-store sales in Vietnam dropped by 7.8 per cent. This is attributed to the “fading of novelty effects” arising from the entry into the market of such international players as H&M, Takashimaya and Zara.

    “Competition in Vietnam’s retail market remained intense,” says Parkson.

    In Myanmar, the group closed its store at FMI Centre, Yangon, in January with a new store at Junction Square in the city opening two months later.

    Parkson says its performance in the next quarter is expected to benefit from year-end school holidays and festive buying. However, it expects challenges with fragile consumer sentiment and stiff competition.

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  • Internal combustion engine to be dead by 2050, says Toyota R&D boss

    Internal combustion engine to be dead by 2050, says Toyota R&D boss

    When it comes to the future of the internal combustion engine, Toyota has long been on the cutting edge. Consider how the company went out early and successfully with the Prius hybrid line of vehicles and how it has come to define the category with the largest market share by far of any hybrid model.

    Now, Seigo Kuzumaki, Toyota’s head of advanced R&D and engineering, is forecasting that the internal combustion engine will be dead as the principal form of vehicle power by 2050 and will power only about 10% of new vehicles as part of a hybrid system.

    The impact on the environment will be profound. Kuzumaki says the reduction in emissions, compared with cars in 2010, will be 90%. Toyota’s technology plan coincides with growing policy making by governments. Last July, for example, United Kingdom Environmental Secretary Michael Gove sad that the sale of new 100% internal-combustion vehicles will be banned in his country by 2040.

    That position differs dramatically from the espoused position of the current U.S. administration, which, in keeping with the Republican political party, continues to deny the impact of human-generated carbon emissions on climate change. The chief reason for that recalcitrance is the fear of carbon taxes on businesses, and the lack of cooperation on extensive environmental standards by other big industrial countries like China and India.

    In the current tax legislation being drafted in the U.S. House of Representatives, there is a call, for example, to end tax incentives for EVs. “[This bill] would fully end the tax incentives for electric vehicles at the end of this year. That’s a shortsighted policy that will increase pollution and undermine an important and growing industry,” according to the Union of Concerned Scientists (UCS).

     But important states in the U.S. like California and New York are proceeding on their own with carbon reducing policies and EV tax credits, without the cooperation or consent of the federal government.

    Toyota is off to a huge start in the production of electric vehicles, producing some 43% of all electric vehicles globally. It has sold more than 11 million Prius brand hybrid and EV vehicles worldwide thus far.

    By 2020, Toyota plans to introduce a new family of EVs, which are expected to have a range of around 300 miles—the gold standard for consumer acceptance of EV vehicles.

    Toyota is far from the only company making heavy investments in EVs. GM, Ford, Nissan, Volkswagen, Honda and luxury makes like Mercedes, BMW and Audi are all making heavy investments. What remains to be seen is how changing governments will set new standards, and at what pace. In the U.S., the Trump administration, for example, is trying to roll back standards set by the Obama administration that proceeded it.

    And consumer tastes and preferences are an issue. Toyota and the other companies can bring out all the EVs they want. But it will take consistency of government policy to allow industry to make the appropriate investments required to meet the level of sales being predicted in the next few decades.

    “The progress of our growing electric vehicle market [can’t be allowed to] stall, because America will fall behind other countries that recognize how critical this technology is to the future of transportation,” says Don Anair, deputy director of the Clean Vehicles program at the UCS.

     

     

  • Toyota facelifts Hilux Revo pickup for 2018

    Toyota facelifts Hilux Revo pickup for 2018

    Brand’s bread-winning workhorse gets a more aggressive-looking face and a new style-led model called Rocco to rival the Ford Ranger Wildtrak and Isuzu D-Max X-Series.

    Toyota Motor Thailand has released the first pictures and details of the facelifted Hilux Revo ahead of its public debut at the year-ending 2017 Motor Expo.

    Featuring in the single- and double-cab models is a new face with a prominent grille to bring the Hilux Revo in line with the US-only Tacoma pickup. The meek looks of the pre-facelift Hilux Revo is alleged to have received a tepid reception from the pickup market.

    And for the first time, Toyota has introduced a new style-led range-topper called Rocco to rival the Ford Ranger Wildtrak and Isuzu D-Max X-Series.

    Available for both single- and double-cab variants, the Rocco features an even sportier grille with plenty of black accents around the vehicle. Other key exterior features are 18-inch alloys shod with 265/60 R18 all-terrain tyres and a sports bar in the cargo bed. The interior also gets the black colour treatment along with leather appointments here and there.

    The 150hp 2.4-litre and 177hp 2.8-litre diesel-turbo engines, plus 166hp 2.7-litre petrol unit, remain unchanged. The same goes for the six-speed manual and automatic transmission.

    As for the Rocco, only the 2.8-litre diesel is available either with manual or automatic and 2WD or 4WD. Depending on body style and transmission, the Rocco is priced between 1.129-1.199 million baht. While the regular single-cab sees prices starting from 572,000 baht, the double-cab kicks out at 672,000 baht.

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  • Mazda launches all-new CX-5 in Thailand

    Mazda launches all-new CX-5 in Thailand

    Mazda Sales Thailand has launched the all-new CX-5 with prices mostly competing with those of the Honda CR-V, one of the most popular SUVs in the Thai market.

    The second-generation CX-5 comes with a completely redesigned exterior and interior, although it still uses the same platform, engines and transmission from its predecessor.

    The CX-5 comes with the same 175hp 2.2-litre diesel-turbo and 165hp 2.0-litre petrol motors, both equipped with a carried-over six-speed automatic driving either the front wheels or all four.

    The entry-level model is the petrol-powered C trim priced at 1.29 million baht, some 100k cheaper than the cheapest CR-V powered by 175hp 2.4-litre petrol engine.

    The higher S spec of the CX-5 goes for 1.33 million baht which, like the C, is 70k more expensive than before. A new grade is the 1.53 million baht SP that comes with the brand’s latest driver-assist technologies. All petrol models are purely front-wheel drive.

    As usual, the diesel-powered is available in just two versions: XD asking for 1.56 million baht and XDL 1.77 million baht, the latter getting those driver-assist tech and four-wheel drive. They are 30k and 80k dearer accordingly than the previous models.

    The CR-V, with 160hp 1.6-litre diesel-turbo, is priced at 1.549 million baht in basic E trim and 1.699 million baht in EL guise.

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  • Hyundai and Michelin join to develop nextgen tyres for EVs

    Hyundai and Michelin join to develop nextgen tyres for EVs

    Hyundai Motor has signed a technical partnership with Michelin to equip next-generation tyres for electric and luxury vehicles. The co-operative deal links the research and development work of the two companies and will enable Hyundai Motor to strengthen its capabilities in tyre performance technology.

    Within the partnership, Hyundai Motor and Michelin will work together to develop a new all-season tyre for electric vehicles. The use of Michelin’s next-generation tyre material and structural technology will help Hyundai Motor optimise overall vehicle efficiency and performance.

    Michelin will also collaborate in the development of a bespoke tyre for a successor model to the Genesis G80 luxury sedan. Co-operative testing and analysis will help determine tyre vibration characteristics at high speeds, both in a laboratory setting and using evaluation conditions set to match the Nürburgring circuit.

    The two companies are striving to achieve the best levels of ride and handling, while minimising noise, vibration and harshness (NVH). The resulting improvements in tyre performance and vehicle dynamics will also contribute to enhanced consumer satisfaction and driving pleasure.

    Woong-chul Yang, vice chairman of Hyundai Motor, said: “I am pleased to announce this new collaborative relationship with Michelin, which will allow Hyundai Motor to accelerate the development and deployment of new tyre technologies. With this enriched knowledge, the next generation of Hyundai Motor electric cars will offer improved performance and efficiency, bringing a direct benefit to the consumer. Working with Michelin will also strengthen Hyundai Motor’s tyre technology on a broader scale, as we also focus on developing luxury Genesis cars and high-performance vehicles.”

    Hyundai Motor representatives visited Michelin’s Research and Development Centre in Clermont-Ferrand, France, to sign the agreement.

    “This cooperation between our two groups is a major milestone for Michelin, and we are proud to have been chosen by Hyundai Motor to put together the best of our leadership and expertise in order to improve their future electric and luxury vehicles.” added Vincent Rousset-Rouviere, president of Michelin Original Equipment Division. “Michelin has been investing constantly in new technologies and innovations to enhance the performance of our tires, so that mobility becomes safer, more sustainable and more enjoyable for all consumers. This new partnership with Hyundai Motor will allow us to open a broad range of new opportunities.”

    Earlier this year, Michelin was awarded top honours in four segments of the 2017 JD Power Original Equipment Tyre Customer Satisfaction Study, excelling in the Luxury, Passenger Car, Truck / Utility, and Performance Sports categories.

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  • AirAsia and Spotify team up to find ASEAN’s most promising music acts

    AirAsia and Spotify team up to find ASEAN’s most promising music acts

    AirAsia and Spotify are teaming up for a new nine-week campaign titled Dreams Come True with AirAsia. The campaign will pit 20 bands against each other over the course of nine weeks. At the end of the campaign, a single act will be chosen to perform with the legendary David Foster at one of his concerts next year.

    Foster, who is an AirAsia ambassador is also one of the biggest names in music production and composition, having worked with artists such as Michael Jackson, Madonna, Whitney Houston and many more. Foster has won 16 Grammy Awards for his efforts.

    The winning act will be selected via the number of streams it has garnered on Spotify over the nine weeks alone. Previous streaming numbers will not be counted.

    The 20 acts that will be partaking in the campaign are IV of Spades, Abirama, Airliftz, Axel Brizzy, Banna Harbera, Battle Bloom, BECKA, Ben Sihombing, Bil Musa, Jean Tan Li Juan, JinHo Bae, Keiko Necesario, Kuizz, Miss Lou, Reality Club, Rob and the Hitmen, Semenjana, Talitha Tan, The Façade and VVYND.

    In a statement released by AirAsia Group CEO Tony Fernandes, the mogul said “Music, Asean and making dreams come true are three big themes in my life, and it gives me great pleasure to be able to bring them all together in this way. Through this campaign, we hope to discover, hone and promote Asean’s next big musical sensation and to make a difference in their lives. I can think of no better mentor for this task than my good friend David Foster, who knows a thing or two about making hits.”

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  • Cebu Pacific looks to grow further in Australia in 2018 with Melbourne

    Cebu Pacific looks to grow further in Australia in 2018 with Melbourne

    Cebu Pacific is looking at launching services to Melbourne in 2018, further strengthening the Philippine low cost carrier’s position in Australia following the upcoming upgrade of Sydney to daily.

    Cebu Pacific has served Sydney for three years and has talked about the possibility of adding service to Melbourne since launching Sydney in late 2014. Talk about Melbourne has escalated over the last year as the performance on Manila-Sydney has improved, prompting the decision to upgrade Sydney to daily for the peak summer season. Sydney has until now been served with four to five weekly frequencies depending on the time of year.

    Cebu Pacific will operate seven weekly frequencies to Sydney in Dec-2017 and Jan-2018, compared to five weekly frequencies for the same period last year. Cebu Pacific for now has loaded a schedule of five weekly frequencies on Manila-Sydney from early Feb-2018. Cebu Pacific CEO Advisor Mike Szucs told CAPA on the sidelines of the 8-Nov-2017 CAPA Asia Aviation Summit that the airline plans to initially operate five or six frequencies during the non-peak and shoulder months but aims to eventually serve Sydney with a daily year-round schedule.

    “Australia is working well because it is selling well on both ends,” Cebu Pacific CEO Advisor Mike Szucs said. “Australia is a very good market for us.”

    Mr Szucs also said Cebu Pacific is now looking at launching services to Melbourne in 2018. “Australia is doing really well for us. We’ve grown the Manila-Sydney market phenomenally. We are the number one player in terms of passenger traffic on Manila-Sydney. We are increasing Sydney to daily frequencies from this December,” he said. “Melbourne is on the agenda for some time next year. We are not there yet – we need to go and finalise the numbers but Melbourne is looking interesting.”

    Philippine Airlines (PAL) is currently the only airline operating the Manila-Melbourne route, while Manila-Sydney has three nonstop competitors including PAL, Qantas and Cebu Pacific. PAL serves Sydney daily and Melbourne with three weekly flights, while Qantas has five to six frequencies on Sydney-Manila (depending on the time of year).

    Cebu Pacific has a fleet of eight A330-300s but has been using its widebody fleet mainly on short haul routes since suspending three Middle East services in mid-2017. Sydney and Dubai, which is served daily most of the year, are the only remaining long haul routes in Cebu Pacific’s network and use the equivalent of two aircraft.

    Mr Szucs said Cebu Pacific will have the opportunity to resume long haul growth in 2018 as A321s enter the fleet. Cebu Pacific mainly plans to use the new A321 fleet to up-gauge short haul routes from A320s but has the flexibility to use some of the A321s to replace A330s on short haul routes, freeing up A330s for new long haul routes. “As the A321s come in next year we will be able to start redeploying A330s again into some targeted long haul markets,” Mr Szucs explained.

    Under this scenario, Melbourne is on the top of the list as Cebu Pacific is not interested for now in resuming expansion in the Middle East, due to what it considers irrational competition in the Philippines-Middle East market. Cebu Pacific is also not interested, for now, in launching Manila-Honolulu, which originally was in its long haul network plan, as this market is highly competitive and unbalanced, consisting mainly of ethnic or VFR traffic.

    Manila-Melbourne is a less competitive route and the Australia-Philippines is a more balanced market. In the Sydney market, Cebu Pacific has been able to generate a relatively even mix of outbound and inbound traffic, covering the leisure, ethnic or VFR and business segments. For the latter, Cebu Pacific mainly targets SMEs as it does not have a premium product.

    “Australia is working well because it is selling well on both ends,” Mr Szucs said. “Australia is a very good market for us.”

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  • Singapore Transforms into Pharma and Medtech Hub

    Singapore Transforms into Pharma and Medtech Hub

    Singapore is undergoing a significant infrastructure upgrade as its regional and international reach gains prestige. Research and consulting firm, GlobalData estimates Singapore’s pharmaceutical market at $948 million and increasing to $1.2 billion by 2021. With an estimated population of just shy of 6 million, Singapore’s domestic pharmaceutical market is small. However, its regional and international reach is well noted thanks to its pro-business environment and strong government support.

    Over 30 of the world’s leading pharmaceutical and medical technology firms including Abbott, GlaxoSmithKline, Lonza, MSD, Novartis, Pfizer and Sanofi-Aventis, have established their manufacturing, R&D and headquarter functions in Singapore.

    In 2015, GlaxoSmithKline designated Singapore as its Asia headquarters. The rapid growth of sales in the five biggest economies of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) prompted the company to concentrate more business units in Singapore.

    US-based healthcare firm MSD opened an $8 million center also in 2015 to focus on innovation through data mining as well as conduct cyber-security surveillance. In addition, the company plans to develop mobile applications that help people live healthier lives and improve how patients follow their doctors’ instructions on taking medication.

    Pharma partnerships

    In September 2017, Singapore’s Agency for Science, Technology and Research, the National University of Singapore and pharmaceutical companies, GSK, Pfizer and MSD, signed a memorandum of understanding to launch an initiative to develop the country’s pharmaceutical sector.

    The initiative, the Pharmaceutical Innovation Programme Singapore, aims to transform the manufacturing operations and technologies of the industry including embracing such initiatives as enabling green and sustainable manufacturing and developing a fully automated supply chain that can predict and react to patient needs and market trends.

    Logistics hubs

    The logistics community has responded to Singapore’s plan to grow its pharmaceutical industry. One such example is the partnership between Singapore’s airport, Changi Airport Group and several airfreight providers including Bollore Logistics, CEVA logistics Singapore, DHL Global Forwarding, dnata Singapore, Expeditors Singapore, Global Airfreight International, SATS, Schenker Singapore and Singapore Airlines Cargo to create the Pharma@Changi initiative. All of the airfreight providers have achieved the IATA Center of Excellence for Independent Validators Certification for Pharmaceutical Handling (IATA CEIV Pharma).

    “Over the last three years, pharmaceutical cargo has consistently ranked among the top five cargo types transported via airfreight globally, in terms of total value. 

    As part of Pharma@Changi, the companies have promised to jointly pursue the best standards in pharmaceuticals handling, and promote Singapore Changi Airport as a trusted and reliable pharmaceuticals air freight hub in the region. According to Changi Airport Group’s Managing Director for Air Hub Development Mr Lim Ching Kiat, “Over the last three years, pharmaceutical cargo has consistently ranked among the top five cargo types transported via airfreight globally, in terms of total value. In the first eight months of 2017, Changi Airport handled more than 15,500 tonnes of pharmaceutical cargo.”

    The Changi Airport Group is also part of Pharma.Aero, an alliance founded by the Brussels and Miami Airports. The group is committed to sharing best practices and market knowledge to improve pharmaceutical handling for the air cargo industry worldwide.

    In early 2016, global logistics provider, Kuehne + Nagel opened its Singapore Logistics Hub facility. Within the facility, 46,000 sqm of the 50,000 sqm facility is dedicated to warehousing space, and 40% of the facility is furnished with advanced chilled storage, redressing and postponement facilities to support the growing base of pharmaceutical and healthcare companies in Singapore.

    Also in 2016, DHL Supply Chain opened its logistics center in Singapore in anticipation of increases in pharmaceutical and high-tech air cargo traffic in the Southeast Asian region. The 90,000-square-foot facility incorporates 130 robotic shuttles to retrieve and store products from up to 72,000 locations arranged in 26 levels.

    Other logistics providers including UPS, CEVA and Schenker have also established a pharmaceutical logistics presence in Singapore.

    Singapore’s medical technology sector is also a major contributor to Singapore’s life sciences industry. Due to a lack of domestic competition in other ASEAN markets and the strategic geographical location of Singapore in the region, medical device companies often decide to set-up their headquarters in the city state. According to consultant group, Dezan Shira & Associates, 10% of the world’s contact lenses, over 70% of microarrays, and roughly half of the world’s thermal cyclers and mass spectrometers are currently produced in Singapore.

    Singapore is well-positioned to be Southeast Asia’s hub for not only pharmaceuticals but also medical technology solutions.

    Currently most of the products are destined for international markets, as the region matures, domestic demand will increase and balance demand and thus logistical requirements.

  • Logistics providers keen on locker network

    Logistics providers keen on locker network

    At least four logistics providers, including the biggest player, Singapore Post, could be involved in the open network of parcel lockers that the Infocomm Media Development Authority (IMDA) called for yesterday in its plan to make deliveries more efficient.

    The pilot will go live in the second half of next year, involving some 75 lockers in public housing estates and train stations in Punggol and Bukit Panjang.

    IMDA will call for proposals for the six-to 12-month pilot from companies by the year end.

    The eventual system will allow logistics providers to operate this integrated network, which is expected to have some 760 lockers covering the whole island eventually. But the different operators have to provide a consistent user interface, much like how the Wireless@SG national Wi-Fi network works.

    SingPost, which operates the largest network of parcel lockers called POPStation at 153 locations, said it is keen to work with more players. It has since July last year been renting out locker space to those who want to use it to facilitate buying and selling on online marketplaces.

    “We would like to work with the Government to expand parcel locker use in Singapore,” said Mr Freddy Chang, head of SP Parcels, a subsidiary of SingPost. “Parcel lockers are an important solution to improving efficiency at the last mile of delivery.

    Local logistics start-up blu said the IMDA scheme is timely, given the increase in online shopping and urban congestion. It currently operates 49 bluPort lockers islandwide, mostly at petrol kiosks, malls and Cheers convenience stores.

    “Collaborating with IMDA allows us to explain and promote the benefits of a parcel locker network to both retailers and logistics sector stakeholders,” said Mr Cliff Lim, business development head at blu, which works with DHL and FedEx.

    Another local start-up, Go Plus, which has developed a parcel locker with biometric verification capabilities, and Ninja Van, which operates a handful of Ninja Boxes here, said they will consider taking part in the IMDA’s parcel locker network.

    For consumers and online shoppers, a nationwide network of lockers is a welcome development. Pre-school teacher Jasmine Kaur, 33, uses POPStation but there is none within walking distance of her home in Ang Mo Kio. “It would be great if consumers have more pickup points to choose from,” she said.

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  • SingPost banks on e-commerce as Q2 net profit slips

    SingPost banks on e-commerce as Q2 net profit slips

    The e-commerce boom continued to prop up earnings at Singapore Post (SingPost), although it on Tuesday posted a fall in second-quarter profits, in the absence of a previous one-off gain.

    Net profit slipped by 9.5 per cent on the previous year, to S$28.47 million for the three months to Sept 30.

    But, with exceptional items excluded, underlying net profit was in fact up by 1.9 per cent, on the back of a 10.2 per cent rise in revenue to S$354.7 million. More than half of that sum – S$190 million, or 53.6 per cent – came from activities related to e-commerce.

    The postal service provider announced in August that it is going through a strategic review, and group chief executive Paul Coutts gave an update: “SingPost’s strategic vision of transforming from a postal provider to an e-commerce logistics player remains relevant and in the right direction.”

    Revenue was up by 16.9 per cent in the group’s postal segment, to S$148.3 million, on the back of more e-commerce deliveries. SingPost singled out China’s Alibaba Group – which owns marketplaces such as Taobao – as a key driver of international mail volume tied to online shopping.

    Meanwhile, logistics revenue increased by 7.6 per cent to S$165.9 million, spurred in part by higher last-mile e-commerce deliveries in Singapore and Australia, although profits were squeezed by the intense price competition in Hong Kong.

    The e-commerce division saw turnover dip by 0.8 per cent to S$63.48 million, largely from the poor performance of TradeGlobal, the United States firm that SingPost picked up in 2015 but has struggled to make money on.

    Mr Coutts said that SingPost is “fully focused on turning the company around”, particularly by drawing on best practices from its other American e-commerce unit, the “good-performing” Jagged Peak.

    This would include tapping automation to bring down manpower costs, he added: “We’re focused on moving from a labour-intensive organisation to being a technology-driven business.”

    Still, SingPost cautioned in its report that TradeGlobal is not expected to be profitable for the financial year ending March 31, 2018.

    Separately, cross-border e-commerce deliveries are expected to be hurt by upcoming changes in the international terminal dues system, although SingPost said that “mitigating measures” are under way.

    As margins are relatively low for international mail and domestic post drops amid a shift to electronic bills and statements, “blended postal margin is expected to decline”, it added.

    SingPost has declared an interim dividend of 0.5 Singapore cent a share, to be paid on Dec 8 – half the size of the one-cent dividend in the same period a year ago.

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  • Clark development eyed by AirAsia Philippines

    Clark development eyed by AirAsia Philippines

    Airasia Group CEO Tony Fernandes is hoping for the full development of infrastructure at the Clark international airport to boost Asean travel. “The answer is Clark for the Philippines but while waiting for that to happen we will begin a line of smaller infrastructure with the tertiary airports we have in the country,” said Fernandes.

    Fernandes said the Philippines is the best kept secret of the ASEAN and described the year as a turning point for the airline in the country. On Tuesday, Fernandes graced the celebration of the 50th anniversary of the founding of AirAsia with the launch of the “I Love Asean” aircraft at the Villamor Airbase with Asean ministers led by His Excellency Dr. AKP Mochtan, and AirAsia Philippines CEO Captain Dexter Comendador.

    “We are an Asean airline, this is a tribute to the Asean. We congratulate Asean for 50 years of peace and now look forward to 50 years of economic growth,” Fernandes said the success of AirAsia. AirAsia aircrafts showcase designs inspired by textiles of the 10 Asean nations: the Batik Cetak from Malaysia, Poom Khao Bin from Thailand, Ulos Batak from Indonesia, Tapis from the Philippines, Tong Dong from Vietnam, Kbach Chan from Cambodia, Lao Phouthai from Laos, Chate from Myanmar, the Jongsarat of Brunei and Vanda Miss Joaquim from Singapore. The Malaysian airline also launched the AirAsia loves Asean, a series of initiatives focused on education, talent development and the economy to celebrate 50 years of the Asean.

    Initiatives comprise the AirAsia Asean university partnership, Asean entrepreneurs day, Asean journalists camp and all stars exchange program. AirAsia launched commercial flights from Clark in March 2012 before transferring its hub to Metro Manila following a strategic partnership with a local carrier in 2013. AirAsia has since been operating on a much larger scale with additional fleet of aircraft from Metro Manila and has expanded its domestic and international network with flights from hubs in Manila, Cebu, and Kalibo. Clark International Airport is batting to become the gateway to the north in the next five years with massive infrastucture plan to catapult the area into the next major hub for travel.

    The Master Development Plan includes the building of a new passenger terminal with an eight million-passenger capacity being implemented by the Department of Transportation.

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  • DHL turns to IoT to avoid truck-worker collisions

    DHL turns to IoT to avoid truck-worker collisions

    Logistics giant DHL has found substantial safety benefits from its initial trials of internet of things (IoT) technologies, and is planning to extend its use of IoT within its Asia-Pacific operations.

    DHL has been testing IoT technologies across its global business – particularly concentrated in Germany, the Netherlands and Poland with the help of Cisco and Conduce – since last year.

    The trials have involved sensors being attached to scanners and materials handling equipment and integrated with DHL’s warehouse management system to allow the company to monitor operational activities in real time.

    Resulting heat maps give DHL a visualisation of its operations and the ability to identify improvements to operational processes and employee safety.

    The company is also working with Huawei in China on an IoT pilot at its Liuzhou automotive plant that makes use of Narrowband IoT low power wide area (LWPA) technology to transmit data to and from detectors on vehicles, DHL’s yard management system, and a truck driver’s mobile app.

    The aim is to halve truck waiting times from the current average of 40 minutes by automating the process by which trucks are sent to docks.

    Closer to home, DHL’s APAC IoT trials have been more focused on improving worker safety.

    DHL supply chain CIO for APAC Steve Walker said the organisation had started with a “straightforward use case” of equipping forklifts and picking staff with sensors to detect when the two came close to each other to avoid collisions.

    “As soon as a truck came within two meters of a picker, the driver’s sensor would send an alert by both sounding and vibrating, allowing for an immediate reaction,” Walker wrote.

    DHL conducted the trial in its advanced regional centre warehouse in Singapore to ensure a controlled environment without the variables of a road or other outdoor-based test.

    Walker said IoT sensors had the ability to “maintain a level of vigilance and consistency that human operators can’t”.

    “IoT sensors and alerts can compensate for workers’ inevitable lapses in concentration, directly addressing some of the most common causes of safety incidents in the warehouse or plant floor,” he said.

    IoT solutions also don’t require workers to make major changes to their behaviour, Walker said – his Singapore trial only asked workers to pin a tag to their uniform.

    Tracking the number and location of alerts generated by the system allowed DHL to create heat maps of where the most forklift-employee collisions occured.

    This insight gave DHL the ability to reduce the likelihood of collisions and rework its warehouse layout for “faster and more efficient goods handling”.

    The forklift drivers who participated in the trial were also equipped with heart rate monitors so DHL could identify links between the number of close proximity alerts and the driver’s tiredness levels.

    The system alerted the driver’s manager when their heart rate fell during periods of fatigue so they could be given a break, Walker said.

    His team is now exploring whether this approach could also work with truck drivers.

    Walker said he expected the investment into IoT for safety and productivity purposes to pay for itself “sooner rather than later”.

    “The more we explore IoT’s practical uses, the more we find safety to be an inextricable part of its implementation,” he said.

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  • Global delivery service boosts investment in Central Asia hub

    Global delivery service boosts investment in Central Asia hub

    DHL has announced a £300 million expansion of its strategic Central Asia Hub in Hong Kong to bolster regional trade. The expansion brings DHL’s commitment to this strategic hub to over £465 million, making it the largest infrastructural investment by DHL Express in Asia Pacific to date.

    Its announcement comes as the Central Asian Hub (CAH) recorded an average 12 per cent year-on-year growth in its shipping volume in the past decade. As one of three global hubs for DHL, the expanded CAH will continue to act as the core hub of the DHL Express global and Asia Pacific regional network, handling more than 40 per cent of its total Asia Pacific shipment volumes.

    Ken Allen, CEO of DHL Express, said: “Given the expected rise in international e-commerce and intra-Asian trade, DHL is committed to strengthening our global network and services. Based in a strategically important location to DHL, the expanded Central Asia Hub in Hong Kong will not only bolster our operational capacity in Asia Pacific, but also facilitate the rapidly-growing international trade demands in the region and around the world.”

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    The expanded CAH will be equipped with an enhanced material handling system that will improve productivity and increase the hub’s throughput capacity – from the current 75,000 pieces of shipments per hour to 125,000 pieces per hour. When operating at its full capacity, the annual throughput of the expanded CAH is expected to go up by 50 per cent to 1.06 million tonnes per annum. As a dedicated and purpose-built air express cargo facility at the Hong Kong International Airport, the expanded CAH will handle six times more in terms of shipment volume than when it was first established in 2004.

    Ken Lee, CEO of DHL Express Asia Pacific, said: “Connecting with more than 70 DHL Express gateways in the region, the Central Asia Hub plays a significant role in strengthening our existing network of hubs in Asia Pacific, including Shanghai, Singapore and Bangkok. The expansion will also help us capitalise the growth in intra-Asian trade lane that currently contributes to 40 per cent of our revenue in Asia Pacific. Equipped with fully automated X-ray inspection machines, it will increase the speed of our shipment inspection by three times – enabling us to expedite the processing speed of shipments that come through the CAH.”

    The expanded CAH is expected to begin operations in 2022, in time to capture strong demand in the Pan-Pearl River Delta (PPRD) region and completion of the Three Runway System for the Hong Kong International Airport in 2024. The expansion of the CAH will deliver about 50 per cent increase in warehouse space to 47,000m2.

    Already a TAPA Class A-certified facility, the expanded CAH will boast a state-of-the-art security system with a total of 520 CCTV cameras and an advanced access control system. The CAH also features a quality control centre (QCC) which monitors flight uplift/landing times in real time, reporting any irregularities on the spot, which in turn enables DHL to proactively notify customers in the event of flight delays or cancellations. The QCC is linked to the Asia Pacific Network Control Centre in Hong Kong and more than 70 gateways and over 500 service centres in over 40 cities in other Asian countries.

    Strategically located in Hong Kong, within a four-hour flight time to major cities in Asia Pacific and in the PPRD region, the CAH is complemented by a well-established Asia Air Network which is served by over 800 commercial daily flights.