中國航空貨運業“僧多粥少”
中國制造業的顯著增長，促使航空貨運公司爭相發展其在華業務。然而，這可能成為一個業務規模擴張過大、速度過快的案例。
China’s spectacular manufacturing growth has left air freight carriers scrambling to develop their activities in the country. But it could be a case of too much, too soon.
兩年前，從南京或上海空運貨物至歐洲，每公斤運費高達4美元;如今的價格約為2.50美元。南京祿口機場副總經理徐勇表示：“在此項業務上仍有錢賺的航空公司非常少見。”
Two years ago, flying goods from Nanjing or Shanghai to Europe cost up to $4 a kilogramme; today it the price is about $2.50. “Very few carriers are still making money here,’’ says Xu Yong, vice-president of Nanjing airport.
由于機隊擴張速度繼續超出需求，航空公司正加劇中國一些機場的擁堵問題。徐勇警告稱：“我們現在的飛機數量實在是太多了。”
As fleet expansion continues to outpace demand, carriers are adding to congestion problems at some Chinese airports. “We have just far too many planes now”Mr Xu warns.
荷蘭航空公司Martinair副總裁弗蘭克?德容(Frank de Jong)表示，中國空運貨物出口量正以每年約10%的速度增長，而飛機貨物運力的增幅約為25%。
Frank de Jong, vice-president at Martinair, the Dutch carrier, says the volume of Chinese exports by air is growing by about 10 per cent a year but aircraft cargo capacity is rising by about 25 per cent.
在亞洲，約半數貨物在運輸時都是放在定期客運航班的腹艙內。例如，在客運航空公司中，大韓航空(Korean Airlines)擁有全球規模最大的貨運業務，其28%的收入來自航空貨運業務。
In Asia, about half of cargo transported is carried in the belly of regular passenger flights. Korean Airlines, for example, has the world’s largest cargo business among passenger airlines, with 28 per cent of its revenue coming from air freight.
在美國，大部分航空貨運業務由以UPS和聯邦快遞(FedEx)為首的專業貨運公司負責。中國政府最近已進一步放寬了對上述兩家公司的準入限制。
In the US, the bulk of air cargo is handled by the specialist freight industry, led by UPS and FedEx. The Chinese government has recently granted greater access to the two companies.
瑞士信貸(Credit Suisse)分析師彼得?希爾頓(Peter Hilton)表示：“美國公司可以向中國體系內注入更多運力，并承接向來由亞洲航空公司包攬的貨運業務。”
Peter Hilton, analyst at Credit Suisse, says: “The Americans are being allowed to inject more capacity into the Chinese system and moving goods that would have traditionally gone to Asian carriers.”
中國政府已加大其發展國內航空貨運業的努力，鼓勵國內航空公司與經驗更為豐富的西方貨運公司合作。而就在不久前，中國政府的重點還幾乎全放在航空客運業的改革和擴張方面。
Beijing has stepped up its efforts to develop a domestic air freight industry, encouraging its airlines to team up with more experienced Western cargo operators. Until recently, the Chinese government had instead focused almost exclusively on overhauling and expanding the passenger airline industry.
一位香港銀行家表示：“從政治角度來看，運送旅客比運輸貨物更能建立聲望，但政府已意識到，貨運對出口驅動型的制造業領域至關重要。”
A Hong Kong banker says: “Politically, there’s a lot more prestige in helping move people rather than goods, but the government has woken up to how crucial freight is for an export-led manufacturing sector.”
