AMI’s Durban traffic surges in first half of 2016

AMI’s has reported “dramatic growth” in traffic for the first half of 2016. AMI, billed as the world’s largest trade-only airfreight and express wholesaler, said that traffic at its Durban office grew by 59 percent for the year to date, compared to the same period in 2015. While the wholesaler’s first-quarter growth of 7.4 percent was already healthy, its second quarter’s growth, at 118 percent, sent half-year averages surging.

Milton French, AMI’s vice president for Africa, linked the rapid growth to a recent increase in Durban’s international air connections, as well as AMI’s strategy of supporting local flights. “When our Durban operation was opened in April 2003, the aim was to provide more localized export and import services for cargo agents,” explained French. “At that time, many of them dealt directly with AMI in Johannesburg. There were no direct international flights to and from Durban, and most of the cargo was routed via JNB by RFS or domestic flights.”

For the first half of 2016, AMI controlled an 8.3 percent share of South Africa’s airfreight market. In May 2016, it was ranked third in the country’s airfreight agents’ league table. “With the progressive introduction of direct, mostly widebody international air services from Durban by major carriers, we now have direct access to a wide range of worldwide destinations. This, and our policy of promoting local services where possible, is driving growth in our traffic,” French concluded.