Global Freight Forwarders Top 25 List Announced, Digital Intelligence Horn Has Blow

Global Freight Forwarding Enterprises Top 25 List Announced

Recently, Armstrong & Associates, a third-party logistics consulting firm, released a list of the top 25 global freight forwarding companies in 2023, which is based on the total logistics revenue/turnover of enterprises in 2023. It is worth mentioning that,In this list, there are 6 hidden benchmark customers，分别为：DHL Supply chain & Global Forwarding、Sinotrans、C.H. Robinson、Kerry Logistics、CTS International Logistics、ClMC Wetrans Logistics、DACHSER。

Source: Armstrong & Associates official website

Freight forwarding industry full of uncertainty and challenges

As an important bridge connecting global trade, the freight forwarding industry,Factors such as the global economic downturn, changes in industry supply and demand, supply chain stability and changes in consumer behavior,profound impact on the market situation of the freight forwarding industry, freight forwarding enterprises are facing challenges and opportunities.

2023 is a year of general downturn in the freight forwarding industry, freight rates soared, transport rates plummeted, freight forwarding enterprises must be flexible to adjust their strategies, while reasonable adjustment of inventory scale and reduce logistics costs.

Armstrong & Armstrong(A & A) statistics show that the global market for third-party logistics (3PL) reached $1.2 trillion in 2023, down 18.5 percent from 2022, but still up 25.3 percent from pre-epidemic 2019.International Transport Management (ITM) third-party logistics air and sea transport demand, rates have fallen sharply,In the second quarter of 2023, global air freight rates fell 41% year-on-year. At the same time,The volatility in international relations has led to lower demand due to market volatility due to rising freight costs and excessive interest rate hikes by the Federal Reserve,Container freight rates for global shipping companies have more than doubled since 2020, and air freight rates are on the rise, peaking in December. While growth was slower than overall revenue due to tight airline capacity markets and higher in stock market prices, net income increased 46.2 percent to $36 billion.

But fortunately, the market demand in the freight forwarding industry will gradually become normal at the end of 2023,More and more freight forwarding enterprises choose digital technology to enhance their key competitiveness.

Digital freight forwarding era is coming

* What is a digital forwarder?

“Digital freight forwarders, as the name implies, digital freight forwarders (DFF) provide users with logistics services through digital platforms, and the service content is richer than that provided by online market and interconnected platform providers.DFF's core value proposition is to provide users with a seamless experience: they can not only transport goods, but also through a single user interface, all information integrated on a single platform. In addition, DFF can also provide users with instant quotations, simple standardized document management, streamlined and efficient communication processes, and real-time data that can easily track shipments online, replacing traditional manual operations and cumbersome paper documents."

-- BCG "Digital Transformation of Freight Forwarding Industry Is Urgent"

The advantages of digital freight forwarding?

The rise of new technologies such as AI artificial intelligence, cloud technology, Internet of Things, and process automation RPA makes it possible for freight forwarding companies to realize digital operations.

In terms of improving operational efficiency,Digital freight forwarders can automate operations to reduce manual operations, improve connectivity between systems, and use big data analytics to improve predictability;In terms of customer experience improvement,Digital freight forwarding can build a digital freight forwarding platform, the business data line on-line, real-time quotation, online real-time tracking of freight status, integration of financial data and so on.

Digital technology will change the operation mode and business thinking of traditional freight forwarding enterprises, improve the transparency of their supply chain and improve customer service capabilities.

How is the digital process of freight forwarding enterprises?

So, what stage are the freight forwarding companies in? In what ways are they using digital technology?

The results of a global freight forwarding survey Intelligence in Transport show that more and more companies around the world are adopting online freight booking platforms and digital freight forwarding. The market share of digital freight booking platforms/digital freight forwarders is growing, with 81.3 percent of shippers and businesses surveyed saying they are using digital services. In 2019, only 49.0 percent of respondents said they had been using online freight booking platforms/marketplaces and digital freight forwarders.The significant increase in usage and adoption shows that shippers and enterprises are accelerating their digital journey.

What are the main aspects of digital technology?

The survey results also show that among enterprises using digital freight services, the proportion of air, sea and land transport is roughly equal.In the daily operation of freight forwarding enterprises, booking, tracking and invoicing are the most commonly used services in air, sea and road transport modes.Companies that provide sea and land transport services seem to rely more on digital platforms and digital freight forwarders to move goods than companies that provide air freight services. In the past few years, shipping companies have made major improvements to their digital freight forwarding services, and all major shipping companies now basically provide digital booking, online quotation and cargo tracking services. The outbreak and changes in international relations have accelerated the overall digital trend in the freight forwarding industry.

图源：Transport Intelligence

Dongyin Intelligent Freight Forwarding Management Platform Enabling Digital Freight Forwarding Enterprises

Smart freight forwarding management platformFocusing on providing comprehensive information management services for logistics service providers, it ensures the quality requirements of logistics information services, reduces management and operation costs, and improves customer service level through the automatic processing of digital order management, capacity co-ordination booking, ship agency, multimodal transport, cargo tracking, customs clearance, cost management and other businesses.

Under the background of the ever-changing global freight forwarding market, Dongyin Technology keeps pace with the times and updates its products and solutions in a timely manner, helping many well-known enterprises in the freight forwarding industry to successfully transform their digital products,Six of the top 25 global freight forwarders and 10 of the top 20 Chinese freight forwarders have started all-round cooperation with Dongyin,It reflects the technical strength and market influence of Dongyin in the field of freight forwarding and international logistics.