Lufthansa recently announced that it plans to cut 3,500 administrative jobs globally. This comes in the wake of an announcement that the Lufthansa Group made an operating loss of €381m for the first quarter of 2012. Lufthansa, in its plan to return to profitability, has set a target of reducing costs in administrative areas by 25% in 2012; it also plans to save €200m in 2012 through what is described as a “Group Wide Purchasing Project”.

In regards the plans to axe 3,500 administrative jobs, Christopher Franz CEO  said “We can only safeguard jobs for the long term and create new openings if we reorganise the administrative functions…

Cargolux made history last week by launching the world’s first Boeing 747-8 freighter full flight simulator at Cargolux’s training centre in Luxembourg. The simulator uses “a new state of the art electric motion system” mirroring the motion and hydraulics of an actual 747-8 freighter very closely.

Frank Reimen, CEO of Cargolux said that ‘The integration of the new simulator into the Cargolux crew training provides us with a more efficient simulator operation. The application of new technologies results in lower energy consumption and a higher fidelity training environment compared to our 747-400F full-flight…

The WCI (World Container Index) for May 3^rd on the Shanghai to Rotterdam freight lane showed that westbound container spot rates increase by a staggering 19%. This dramatic increase equates to an increase of $629 per forty foot container and is a result of GRI’s (general rate increases) successfully implemented by major carriers on May 1^st.

The World Container Index is compiled and assessed by Drewry reports and measures container freight rates on major East-West trade routes.

To…

The Shanghai Container Freight Index (SCFI) reported that during the week ending 27-04-2012, freight rates between China and Northern Europe increase by a staggering 3.3%, which in monetary terms is $180 per TEU (twenty unit equivalent). This increase surprised many market analysts as a substantial rate increase is due to be implemented by several major carriers today, May 1^st.

However, in regards implementing further rate increases, Lars Jensen, esteemed freight industry analyst, warned that ““With the capacity reductions now disappearing, the carriers are facing a test: will they collectively…