Emirates boosts trade with new service

An Emirates Airline's Airbus A380-800 is displayed at the Dubai Airshow on November 19, 2013. Direct cargo flights by Dubai based Emirates SkyCargo are expected to boost trade with Pakistan. AFP PHOTO/KARIM SAHIB 

By WANGUI MAINA

In Summary

• Direct cargo flights by Dubai based Emirates SkyCargo are expected to boost trade between Kenya and Pakistan
• The new freighter service to Sialkot, in Pakistan, by Emirates freighter division is expected to facilitate the ease the movement of goods between the two destinations via Dubai

Kenya’s trade with Pakistan has received a new boost with the introduction of direct cargo flights by Dubai based Emirates SkyCargo.

The new freighter service to Sialkot, in Pakistan, by Emirates freighter division is expected to facilitate the ease the movement of goods between the two destinations via Dubai.

The two countries have a strong trade correlation in that the Asian country is one of the biggest buyers of Kenyan tea while the bulk of the rice consumed locally is shipped in from Pakistan.

Trade between the two countries has been on the rise reaching a high of $448 million (Sh38.53 billion) in 2012, compared to $245 million (Sh21.1 billion) five years ago.

Kenya mainly exports tea to Pakistan with the country importing rice from the Indian subcontinent country.

The expansion of Emirates cargo airline, which operates out of Nairobi three times a week, is expected to ease move of goods between the two countries, in addition to the belly cargo that moves with the 14 weekly passenger flights.

“With the new service to Sialkot, which is a major manufacturing hub in Pakistan, we are creating a new lane that will give Kenyan businesses access to trade opportunities with Pakistan and Indian sub-continent,” Khalid Al Hinai, Emirates Cargo Manager for East Africa.

The new flight is the fifth destination for the airline in Pakistan.