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Ctrack Freight & Transport Index

Ctrack Freight & Transport

Index returns best quarter yet

The South African Logistics sector has just completed its strongest ever quarter of
growth to date.

AS OFTEN happens, the biggest decline was While this recovery might seem remarkable,
followed by the highest growth. With September remember that if your turnover is cut by 50
being the end of the third quarter, Statistics SA percent from R1,000 to R500 in one year and you
is expected to release the updated GDP figures get a 50 percent increase on the R500 turnover
imminently and all indications are that it will show the next (year two), your turnover is now only
the strongest growth per quarter in our lifetime. R750, which is still 25 percent less than in year one.
In June 2020, the Ctrack Freight Transport However, this does not take away from the
Index showed that the logistics sector recorded a strength of the bounce or the record-breaking
decline of 17,6 percent compared to the previous nature of the recovery, but it does indicate that
quarter, while the growth over the second quarter everything is not back to normal yet – with normal
has improved with 11,8 percent. According to the meaning the logistics sector returning to where it
Ctrack Freight Transport Index, only two sub- was before the slowdown in mid-2019.
sectors recorded a decline. These were Pipelines, The effects of the second wave of COVID-19 are
which is the smallest subsector, and Storage, which yet to be seen, however, at the moment it seems to
is historically very difficult to predict. have hit Europe the hardest. China has recovered
“The Ctrack Freight Transport Index has been and is growing strongly while indications are that
recording these trends for a considerable period the recession in the US was not as bad as feared.
of time and we have never seen such growth “We do expect some negative effects, but
and recovery, which is excellent news for the believe that they will not be as devastating as
economy,” comments Hein Jordt, Managing those of the first wave,” says Jordt.
Director of Ctrack SA.
Freight transport tracks the economy in the Internal sectors
near real time, and this tell us that the third Internal sectors are faring better than those
quarter GDP will be the highest on record too. with a bigger foreign trade factor. The Ctrack
The Ctrack Freight Transport Index has a very Freight Transport Index covers six sub-sectors
close relationship with GDP and is also strongly in the logistics arena. They all behave differently,
correlated to the co-incident index. This is, of particularly during a worldwide crisis such as the
course, why we now expect the strongest GDP current COVID-19 pandemic.
on record for South Africa and many other Airfreight had the strongest quarterly
countries too. recovery; this is mainly due to the fact

2 October/November 2020 | Logistics News