Safmarine Container Lines has appointed Maersk Kuwait Company to represent its shipping services, marketed under the brand names of Safmarine, CMBT and Himalaya Express, in Kuwait.
"It is group policy to manage our client-interface though our own resources wherever possible. This new arrangement will enable us to focus directly on Safmarine's most important assets, our customers and their shipping requirements," said Safmarine. The company was earlier represented by Al Rashed International Shipping Company.
FedEx launches e-Clear
Federal Express (FedEx), in association with the Dubai Ports and Customs Department, has launched "e-Clear", an express clearance service on dutiable goods arriving in Dubai.
The service, said to be the first of its kind in the UAE, involves forwarding the required documentation electronically while the freight is still in the air, enabling FedEx to begin customs clearance before landing.
Meanwhile, Federal Express will provide non-stop links between its EuroOne and AsiaOne networks by starting five weekly flights on August 28. The aircraft will be 90-tonne MS-11 capacity freighters flying non-stop from the company's Paris super-hub to its Asian counterpart at Subic Bay in the Philippines.
The direct Asia service will be backed by 37-tonne capacity Airbus 310 freighters connecting FedEx hubs in Paris, Dubai, Mumbai and Bangkok via a criss-cross pattern of flights.
UAE ships and tankers certified
All passenger ships, tankers and bulk carriers in the UAE are already certified under the International Safety Management (ISM) code, says ship certification expert Henri Van Berlo. The ISM code is an international management standard for the safe operation of ships and prevention of pollution. Berlo, Middle East marine manager of Bureau Veritas, a Paris-based company for ship certification and quality control, told Gulf Today that all maritime organisations in the UAE including the Ministry of Transport were enforcing the code well in advance of the July 1, 2001 deadline.
Asry appoints new agents
Asry has recently strengthened its world-wide marketing and sales network with the appointment of new agents in Cyprus and in the Singapore/Asean area.
John Gibbon & Sons represents Asry in Cyprus and ATC Marine Associates in the Singapore/ Asean markets.
GPA posts growth
The number of outgoing parcels rose 39 per cent over the four years to 1999, while incoming ones were more by one per cent, a UAE General Postal Authority (GPA) report says.
