First in class

zoom

The Middle East is the TNT Group's fastest-growing region. Bryan Moulds, TNT Express' country manager, explains why.

Overlooking the northern end of the Dubai International Airport runway, TNT Express' UAE headquarters has the perfect view of the ever-increasing volumes of airfreight that are being transshipped through the Middle East's most established hub.

Although the Dutch courier and express giant's largest markets are elsewhere, in Europe and Asia, the visit of TNT's most senior executives to the region only a few months ago speaks volumes about the company's intentions for the region, especially given the difficulties associated with the current environment.

"The Middle East and Africa region is growing faster than any of our other markets, and is certainly identified as such by the TNT Group as a whole," explains Bryan Moulds, UAE country manager, TNT Express.

"As far as size within the group is concerned, we are of course small, but this is a very strategic area geographically due to its growth perspective. Over the last eight years, UAE revenue as a whole has had a compound annual growth rate of 32.2%, so my position is an extremely interesting one to be in."

As a TNT veteran, having been with the company for 19 years, with over eight of those years spent in Dubai, Moulds is aware that his position in the UAE is key to the revenues of the Middle East region as a whole, an area that he sees as continuing to provide exceptional growth over the next five years, at the very least.

From a strategic point of view, air connectivity plays a central role in this region, as there are no reliable road networks that link the GCC to other continents.

As a result, the road network remains intra-GCC, with connections to a lesser degree to the Levant. Regardless of a predicted downturn, therefore, the volumes that come through Dubai by air will remain a huge component.

"Suffice to say, we‘re talking about upwards of 400 kilotonnes by air just from our European leg," explains Moulds.

"Now, while this figure may be declining by a little, we are still talking about big numbers; from a strategic importance perspective, connectivity by air is absolutely imperative. Dubai is our Middle East hub and material is brought  through here before being redistributed around the region."

Of course, express companies the world over are currently seeing the same signals in as a result of the slump; clients are tending to move for the cost-effective option, which means consolidation via either road or sea freight, rather than air.

"We are seeing little movements in our results suggesting a slight tendency towards road away from air; our road growth in this region is expanding by an impressive 40% year-on-year," continues Moulds.

"This isn't to say that our air volumes aren't growing as well, but they're not increasing to that extent. This year, TNT's UAE branch will post a 28.5% growth over 2007, which means that we haven't seen the full effects of the global slowdown yet. We have noticed a little less business in certain accounts and certain industries but the reality of what we are facing is yet to become truly apparent."

Print | Email | Discuss this article

| Share |

READERS' COMMENTS

Click here to post a comment

Add your Comment All posts are sent to the administrator for review and are published only after approval. ArabianBusiness.com reserves the right to remove any comment at any time for any reason. Please keep your responses appropriate and on topic. Arabian Business would like to point out that only comments relevant to the story will be published. Any containing personal insults or inappropriate language will not be approved.
Name *
Remember me on this computer
Email *	(Your email address will not be published)
City
Country
Subject *
Comment *
Notify me of further comments
Enter the words above *
Please click post only once - your comment will not be published immediately.

MORE FROM ARABIANBUSINESS.COM