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IATA calls for stronger approach to dangerous goods across the supply chain

IATA has called for more to be done across the supply chain to tackle the risks from undeclared and misdeclared dangerous goods. The airline association today published a whitepaper in which it argued for a stronger and more collaborative multilayered approach to dangerous goods. The call comes amid discussions among regulators on the role of existing aviation security screening processes as a key line of defence. "IATA stresses that security screening is an important layer of protection, but not a primary solution," the association said. IATA global head of cargo Brendan Sullivan added: "Dangerous goods are transported safely by air every day. The risk comes when they enter the system undeclared or incorrectly declared. "Every part of the supply chain has a role to play in identifying and stopping such incidents as soon as possible. Security screening, which is primarily focused on terror threats, is one layer of protection against rogue shippers, but it is not a complete solution. "A comprehensive multi-layer approach beginning as far upstream the supply chain as possible is essential." IATA said that Dangerous Goods Regulations enable the safe passage or properly declared shipments. However, the issue often stems from hidden items. Figures from the airline association show that in the first half of 2025, some 80% of incidents reported to IATA that involved dangerous goods stemmed from undeclared or hidden dangerous goods. "Lithium batteries and other concealed hazardous commodities, such as undeclared e-Cigarettes and aerosols, were among the products most commonly identified," IATA said. IATA said that existing security controls, including cargo screening, may provide an additional opportunity to identify anomalies and intercept some unauthorised dangerous goods. However, screening should not be regarded as the sole or primary solution. Current cargo screening technologies, certification standards, algorithms and training programmes were primarily developed to detect weapons, explosives and other security threats. Therefore, in the white paper, IATA urged governments to strengthen oversight and enforcement of dangerous goods requirements; Manufacturers and online marketplaces to ensure dangerous goods are correctly identified; shippers, freight forwarders, and postal operators to strengthen training and acceptance controls and enhance the use of customer and shipment data; airlines and ground handlers to strengthen checks before cargo is loaded; and airports to improve coordination and information sharing across the cargo community.

Delays mount as port disruption in Asia ties up 3m teu of box capacity

A surge in vessel delays, driven by typhoons and port disruption in Asia, has left 8.5% of the global container fleet effectively unavailable. New analysis from Sea-Intelligence suggests this equates to some 3m teu of vessel capacity - a fleet roughly equivalent in size to that of the world's fifth-largest carrier. Schedule reliability fell to just below 50% in August, following an already sharp deterioration in July. Sea-Intelligence said reliability had fallen 12.7% over the two months, with only three periods since measurement began in 2011 recording a steeper decline. The average delay of vessels arriving late also increased, to 6.8 days, a level exceeded only during the worst disruptions of Covid. The consultancy said June-August had represented the largest two-month increase in vessel delays in its dataset. "The main driver of the worsening delays, and hence capacity absorption, is a continuing stream of typhoons impacting major ports in Asia," Sea-Intelligence explained. It argued that the impact on available capacity was particularly significant against the pre-pandemic baseline. Between 2011 and 2019, an average 2.2% of global capacity was absorbed by vessel delays. The current 8.5% represents a deviation of more than six percentage points, which Sea-Intelligence said was having a significant effect on the global supply/demand balance. The consultancy also warned that the congestion could persist well into next year. It explained that during the pandemic, capacity absorption from congestion peaked at 13.8%, before falling to 3.6%, over 16 months. During the Red Sea crisis, absorption reached 6.5% before declining to 3.7% within six months. Those episodes suggest congestion can improve by around 0.5-0.6 percentage points a month. Applying that recovery rate to current conditions, Sea-Intelligence estimated it could take seven to ten months for capacity absorption to return to the low point recorded in June 2025. And, by this calculation, a return just to the level at the end of 2025 could take six to eight months. And the analyst added: "The current situation is therefore unlikely to be fully resolved before Chinese New Year peak in 2027." That holiday falls on 6 February, meaning Asian ports could still be dealing with congestion as carriers and shippers prepare for the pre-CNY cargo surge. The consultancy said the extent to which the current disruption proved temporary, or developed into a more persistent constraint on capacity, would become clearer as the typhoon season and its effects on Asian port operations subsided.

Slower demand growth emerging in Asia Pacific

Asia Pacific demand last month was dampened by a reduction of e-commerce parcels to Europe, although sustained volumes of AI-related goods helped airlines achieve a healthy year on year growth margin. Preliminary August traffic figures released by the Association of Asia Pacific Airlines (AAPA) found that international air cargo demand, as measured in freight tonne kilometres (FTK), grew by 1.1% year on year. This reflected a slower emerging pattern of growth since the EU ended the de minimis exemption on 1 July. Demand growth was up 1.1% year on year for July. In comparison, there was a 4.1% increase in April, a 2.5% increase in May, and a 3.2% increase in June. The AAPA said that "air cargo markets continued to benefit from rising export activity and brisk demand for AI-related goods, although e-commerce shipments to Europe showed some weakness following the introduction of charges on small parcels". Meanwhile, offered freight capacity expanded by 1.6%. As a result of the demand and capacity changes, the average international freight load factor fell by 0.3 percentage points to 59.3% for the month. Wong Hong, director general of AAPA, said that international "air cargo demand rose by a strong 5.5%"over the first eight months of the year, However, he added that elevated jet fuel prices, airspace restrictions and weaker Asian currencies are raising costs, meaning airlines have faced profitability challenges. Airlines also have to contend with geopolitical developments and changes in trade policies. Despite this, Hong said regional economic growth and trade activity should continue to support air cargo demand "although growth is likely to remain uneven across markets".