Freight and Export Market Update bulletin, 1 May 2020

International air freight from

Report from Carla Hannaford, Senior Aviation Business Analyst, Brisbane Airport Corporation

(Note—there have been no changes to the airline schedule provided in the last bulletin on 24 April)

 Most international operations have been suspended until the end of May.  Continuing service of passenger aircraft with belly freight options: o : (2 repatriation/week), Virgin (2 repatriation/week) o Auckland: Air (2/week), Qantas (2 repatriation/week) o Taipei: Airlines of Taiwan (2/week), EVA Air (freight only) (3/week) o Los Angeles: Qantas (1/week), Virgin (1/week) o Seoul-Incheon (ICN): Korean Air (1 only repatriation outbound 24/4)  Further information: www.bne.com.au

Air freight from airport

Report from Dale Edney, Economic Development Manager, Cairns airport

 Qantas will continue to operate the weekly Sunday freighter service until the end of June (with Government support). This service picks up approximately 40 tonnes of freight out of Cairns each week and is currently the only workable logistics option for live fish exporters, who have transit time sensitive freight from tank to tank.  The live seafood industry remains constrained by the lack of a second international freight flight and lack of wide body domestic flights to connect with international services out of Brisbane airport.  The five government supported Brisbane-Cairns-Brisbane flights have been welcomed by freight forwarders and are being utilised for boxed freight. These flights are not capable of carrying live fish due to the configuration of the fish bins (oxygenated plastic tanks) they travel in.  Cairns Airport continues to work with industry and airlines to secure an additional mid-week freight flight to Hong Kong via Cairns but with limited success. Charter freighters to Brisbane airport are also being considered but it is difficult to make this work due to the significant increase in transit time, duplication of flight miles, and additional cost.  Projected freight available for a mid-week flight is in the vicinity of 20 to 40 tonnes and would consist mostly of live fish and live crayfish (destination Hong Kong / China), with the remainder made up of aquarium fish, and live corals (destination Europe / United States) and a small amount of agricultural produce (destination Hong Kong and ).

For the latest information on coronavirus (COVID-19), please visit: covid19.qld.gov.au – for COVID-19 response information and advice health.qld.gov.au – for health advice business.qld.gov.au – for business and industry advice

Air freight from Wellcamp

Report from Robert Kasch, General Manager, Wellcamp Airport

 The Cathay Pacific freighter continues to take full export loads mainly of perishable cargo.  ULD types – particularly AKE’s are in short supply.  Wellcamp continues to stay connected to the freight forwarders to support export requirements.  Exporters requiring assistance can contact Robert Kasch on 0466 451 998.

Sea freight from Brisbane

Report from Andrew Brinkworth, Manager Trade Development, Port of Brisbane Pty Ltd (PBPL)

 Mostly business as usual at the Port of Brisbane this week.  According to government sources, major ports in China have achieved 90 per cent of the average throughput of the same period last year. Ningbo Zhoushan Port, the world’s leading port by throughput volume, restored most of its handling capacity in March with a total of 2.28 million TEUs.  However, over April many international container shipping lines are reportedly feeling some financial pressure, with COVID affected cargo volumes from Asia to USA and Europe in reduced volumes. This mirrors the trade downturn Australasia experienced in March, which is largely recovering now—though it may be affected again in the next few months by current low consumer demand for imported goods.  Further information: www.portbris.com.au

Sea freight from

Report from Maria James, Manager Trade, Port of Townsville Limited

(Note—there were no changes to the report from 24 April)

 Few changes / issues reported.  Live animal exports continue as normal (frequency and volume).  Maritime Safety Queensland has granted a temporary exemption to the 14-day isolation period to livestock carriers on the grounds of animal welfare.  The relatively shorter journeys to and Vietnam have helped the live export trade as ships do not need to remain at anchor for the balance of the days prior to their arrival (and cuts their sizable demurrage costs).

Regional flight routes that may have freight capacity

Report from Warwick Williams, Department of Transport and Main Roads

 The following passenger services may be able to take a small amount of freight on occasion. They operate on these routes at a reduced frequency: o Gulf: Cairns – Normanton – Karumba – Mornington Island – Burketown – Doomadgee – Mount Isa o Northern 1: Townsville – Winton – Longreach o Northern 2: Townsville – Hughenden – Richmond – Julia Creek – Mount Isa o Western 1: Brisbane – Toowoomba – St George – Cunnamulla – Thargomindah o Western 2: Brisbane – Toowoomba – Charleville – Quilpie – Windorah – Birdsville – Bedourie – Boulia – Mount Isa

Export market information

Austrade are publishing regular insights on markets and trade on their COVID-19 website.

International Freight Assistance Mechanism (IFAM)

 While COVID-19 has put constraints on air freight in both capacity and cost, the Australian Government is backing Australia's agriculture and seafood export sectors through a $110 million initiative. The International Freight Assistance Mechanism (IFAM) will help exporters get their high-quality produce into key overseas markets. Visit the IFAM website for more information.  An industry briefing on the IFAM was held on Friday 24 April. Key items of discussion were: o IFAM Head, Mr Michael Byrne, gave a summary about options available for Queensland air freight. o IFAM has received multiple inquiries from Queensland producers including North Queensland fishers. o The aggregation of freight to minimum threshold levels is critical to attract IFAM support. Producers and freight fowarders should be aiming for at least 15 tonne freight aggregates at a port. o Toowoomba and Surat Basin Enterprise has been in contact with Austrade to exchange information on behalf of some southern Queensland agriculture exporters. o DAF and Trade and Investment Queensland (TIQ) will continue to assist with communication and collaboration to support producers and freight forwarders where needed—particularly in where demand is high with high- value products. o DAF along with TIQ will continue to work with Austrade to explore air freight options for Queensland’s primary producers and freight forwarders.  In case you missed it, visit Fresh Plaza to read about IFAM seeking to schedule regular charter flights with Qantas and published on Tuesday 28 April.

Support for exporters

Australian exporters impacted by the COVID-19 crisis will now have access to business-saving loans between $250,000 and $50 million, under a new $500 million capital facility to be administered by Export Finance Australia.

The Export Capital Facility is aimed at trade-exposed businesses, including those in regional Australia, to help them get through this crisis and out to the other side.

For more information on Export Finance Australia, including how to apply for finance, visit: www.exportfinance.gov.au/covid19.

About this bulletin

The Department of Agriculture and Fisheries (DAF) convenes an Agricultural Coordination Group (ACG) to address the concerns of the Queensland agriculture industry about coronavirus (COVID- 19) and its impact. The group has representation from government agencies and key agriculture and supply chain industries. This bulletin is produced by the Supply Chain and Logistics working group, an advisory group to the ACG.

Disclaimer: While every care is taken to ensure the accuracy of this information, the Department of Agriculture and Fisheries (DAF) does not invite reliance upon it, nor accept responsibility for any loss or damage caused by actions based on it.