|
|
|
|
|
Kuehne + Nagel Seeks to Grow; China Exports Slowing
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
A Kuehne + Nagel International logistics center in Haiger, Germany.
PHOTO: ALEX KRAUS/BLOOMBERG NEWS
|
|
|
|
The world’s largest freight forwarder by revenue spies room for growth even as freight volumes are tumbling. Kuehne + Nagel CEO Stefan Paul tells the WSJ Logistics Report’s Paul Berger that his company is targeting profitability over volume as it navigates the post-Covid era. That means seeking a greater share of lucrative ocean trade lanes in which Kuehne + Nagel is underrepresented. It also means more M&A. Mr. Paul declined to comment on billionaire Klaus-Michael Kuehne’s recent interest in Germany-based freight forwarder DB Schenker. But Mr. Paul said Kuehne + Nagel could pursue an omnichannel fulfillment acquisition in the U.S. Kuehne + Nagel reported net revenues
in 2022 equivalent to $41.5 billion. The results came despite a 43% decline in operating profit in the most recent quarter as cargo volumes reset from pandemic highs. Mr. Paul believes Kuehne + Nagel is well positioned to weather freight volatility and that a cargo recovery could begin as soon as the second half of this year.
|
|
|
|
|
|
Yantian Port in Shenzhen, China. PHOTO: STR/AGENCE FRANCE-PRESSE/GETTY IMAGES
|
|
|
|
China’s export powerhouse is sputtering. Chinese exports fell 6.8% during the first two months of 2023 from a year earlier, extending a string of year-over-year declines stretching back to October. The Wall Street Journal’s Stella Yifan Xie writes that the trend is likely to continue as central bankers in the U.S. signal they may keep interest rates higher for longer to battle inflation, which could dampen demand for Chinese-made furniture, electronics and other goods. Exporters say Western clients have been slow to visit China following the lifting of Covid restrictions in part because flights remain scarce and in some cases are prohibitively expensive, while visas have been difficult to secure.
Meanwhile, in South Korea, a bellwether for global trade, exports shrank for a fifth straight month in February, partly because demand from China remained weak. Chinese imports fell by a larger-than-expected 10.2% in the January to February period.
-
China’s foreign minister warned that the U.S. strategy toward China risked plunging the countries into a conflict. (WSJ)
-
Germany has launched a review of the country’s 5G high-speed mobile telecommunications networks as part of a broader revamp of its relationship with China. (WSJ)
|
|
|
|
|
“Despite lifting Covid-19 restrictions, foreign clients so far haven’t been flowing back to China to reconnect with exporters and manufacturers here.”
|
— A salesperson at Fuzhou Heva Shoes
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
36.1
|
The Transportation Prices index in the Logistics Managers Index for February, down 5.9 percentage points from January, the fastest contraction rate in the index’s 6.5-year history.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|