Speaking to the guests, Nelson pointed to a sense of an upturn, backed up by long-term indicators from the International Monetary Fund that point to four per cent growth in global trade in 2019, and a sudden jump in the PMI (Purchase Managers’ Index) along with consistent growth in e-commerce.
He also outlined Cathay Cargo’s long-term commitment to becoming the most customer-centric air cargo service provider, which will be based around three differentiators of ‘expertise’, ‘quality’ and ‘innovation’.
Nelson explained: ‘Expertise will be a focus on those time-, temperature- and handling-sensitive shipments, and will include new technology such as next-generation track and trace. Quality will be about delivering operational excellence, ensuring that we stay ahead of the game and the quality of the shipment is the same across the entire journey, and we will use data to inform and improve how we serve our customers. Innovation will include using new technology not just in terms of track and trace, as well as digitisation – from making an intuitive booking process right through to our efforts to eliminate paperwork from the industry.’
The event was followed by a weekend at the Hong Kong Rugby Sevens.