The increase in tariffs is due to capacity reductions in the Asia and Pacific region that have led to lower availability of belly-hold cargo space.

The hike in air cargo charges for various sectors ranges from 10% to 20%, according to a recent industry analysis by Morgan Stanley. The loss suffered by airlines due to SARS has turned into a boon for major freight operators like UPS and Fedex, the report said. The benefit relates to both intra-Asia as well as trans-Pacific cargo traffic.

International freight forwarders have been benefiting from the hike in freight rates, says the Morgan Stanley report. Since the air freight business in Asia is still growing in double digits, their earning potential is steady. Forwarders are successfully passing on higher rates to shippers.    

• Make sure the vendor is selling a true network solution. Don’t just buy a transportation management or inventory-visibility package.
• Since a private portal should be the center of the network, it requires the ability to connect easily to many partners. 
• The provider should be able to integrate its solution with existing applications quickly and seamlessly, both within the walls of your company and with the various members of the trading community. 
• Private networks provide an opportunity to examine data and discern patterns in your transportation and distribution operations. Make sure the system offers advanced analytical tools.
• Choose a scaleable solution that can grow with your business. 
• Make sure that whichever technology you choose supports your overall corporate logistics objectives. 
  Check each potential vendor's track record and ask for references. 

• Aether Systems, Inc.
• Blue Agave Software
• Cognos Corporation
• Cushman & Wakefield
• DHL Solutions/ XPL
• freightPro
• KNAPP Logistics
• Leap Technologies
• National Retail Systems, Inc.
• Optum, Inc.
• Pitney Bowes, Inc.
• Schenker of Canada
• SEAL Consulting Inc.
• Viewlocity, Inc.

Data Synchronization benefits include the potential streamlining of the entire CPG supply chain and the reduction of current invoice errors by more than 40 percent. According to AMR:

• The average money spent on internal preparation will be four times the amount spent on external connectivity efforts. Most companies have underestimated the amount of internal effort required for suppliers to cleanse the data and for retailers to build the capabilities to use the data. 
• Most projects start with a six-month estimate and continue well past the year checkpoint. Companies must proactively take on these challenges of time and internal effort and plan accordingly. 
• There are three categories of vendors that provide Data Synchronization solutions: Exchanges and data pools (including Transora, WWRE, and EAN country-specific data pools), Data repository vendors (like Velosel, HAHT Commerce, and Trigo), and Connectivity vendors (including Sterling Commerce, Commerce One, IBM WebSphere, and Invois).  

The software allows companies to provide data in advance to U.S. Customs. TradePoint Systems says it has a number of clients live on the new system including General Motors Corporation. 

With the software, General Motors says it can clear up to 70 shipments on one truck using a bar code containing the Trip number (or with the transponder) in less than 30 seconds. Currently, GM clears approximately 3,700 shipments each week using this process in Detroit and Port Huron, Mich. 

“The carriers for these types of loads would typically spend 2-4 hours at the border having their paperwork processed,” says Gilbert Duhn, GM Customs Administrator.

Predicted demand for hiring IT workers has reached an historic low of only 493,000 positions over the next 12 months – down from 1.6 million at the start of 2000 and less than one-half of the predicted 1.1 million positions needed at the start of 2002. 

Sixty-seven percent of those interviewed said they thought hiring demand would stay the same or decline over the next twelve months. 

Companies are also moving more positions overseas, with 12% of IT companies and 3% of non-IT companies saying they have already opened up overseas operations. Large IT companies were most likely to say they’ve made this move – 22% have already moved work offshore. 

Additionally, 15% of IT firms say they will, or are undecided about, moving jobs overseas in the next 12 months, while 4% of non-IT firms say the same.