FREIGHT FORWARDING MARKET ANALYSIS

Freight forwarding is the shipment and coordination of goods from one destination to another destination via multiple or a single carrier via marine, air, rail or road. The other task of freight forwarder includes warehouse planning, supplying cargo insurance, and others. The global freight forwarding market is segmented on the basis of mode of transport, and services.

Increase in international trade volume transported by air freight and ocean freight is expected to drive the market growth during the forecast period. Freight forwarding industry is highly dependent on the volume of the cargo transported. Therefore, air and ocean freight forwarding companies have to increase their cargo volume in order to fulfil the demand of consumers. For instance, in December 2019, Kuehne + Nagel International AG, a transport and logistics company based in Germany, increased its air cargo volume from 1.5 million air freight metric ton in 2018 to 1.7 million air freight metric ton in 2019 with a growth of 11.02%.

In December 2019, Sinotrans Limited, a logistics company based in Germany, increased its ocean container capacity from 3.3 million twenty-foot equivalent unit (TEU) in 2018 to 3.7 million twenty-foot equivalent unit (TEU) in 2019 with a growth of 11.3%

Global Freight Forwarding Market - Impact of Coronavirus (Covid-19) Pandemic

COVID-19 has significantly disrupted almost all the industries including infrastructure, retail, manufacturing, logistics, and others. To combat COVID-19 pandemic, several governments across the globe such as U.S., France, India and Italy have imposed nationwide lockdown to restrict the spread of COVID-19 disease. For instance, Government of India have imposed lockdown from 1 June to 1 July until the further notice. Owing to the Lockdown, freight transport volumes may be reduced by up to a half by the end of 2020 in most parts of Asia.

Europe is expected to hold dominant position in the global freight forwarding market during the forecast period.

Statistics:

Europe held dominant position in the global freight forwarding market in 2019, accounting for 31.8% share in terms of value, followed by Asia Pacific, and North America.

Figure 1: Global Freight Forwarding Market Share (%), By Region, 2019

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On the basis of region, Europe was the dominant in the global freight forwarding market in 2019, reporting 31.8% market share in terms of value, followed by Asia Pacific and North America, respectively. The growth of the region is mainly attributed to the presence of major players such as Kuehne + Nagel, DHL, DB Schenker, and Panalpina Inc.

 The Asia Pacific region is witnessing significant growth in the global freight forwarding market. The growth of the region is mainly attributed to the presence of fast-growing economics such as India and China. The fast-growing economies in the region offer growth opportunities, and hence leading companies are focused on merger and acquisition in order to expand their companies’ presence in these economies. For instance, in March 2021, Germany-based global third-party logistics (3PL) services provider, Kuehne+Nagel (K+N), acquired China-based freight forwarder, Apex International Corporation, for US$ 1.5 Billion. The aim of the acquisition to expand its presence Asia region.

Among the mode of transport segment, the air freight forwarding segment is expected to dominate the market during the forecast period owing to increasing demand for cross-border e-commerce will significantly influence airfreight forwarding market growth.

The growing e-commerce industry has contributed in augmenting trade activities, thus resulting in growth of the market. According to figures from the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD), in 2018, 1.45 billion individuals shopped online globally (up 9% from 2017) and e-commerce sales reached US$25.6 trillion (up 8% from 2017).

Figure 2: Global Freight Forwarding Market Value (US$ Bn), 2017 - 2028

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The global freight forwarding market was valued at US$ 204.6 Bn in 2019 and is expected to reach US$ 277.5 Bn by 2028 at a CAGR of 5.0% between 2021 and 2028.