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Flying pigs contribute to one airline’s profit surge

a plane loading cargo onto a platform

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Airlines around the world have suffered some of their worst financial months on record. US Air traffic plummeted 90% in April, and worldwide demand for air freight dropped 27.7% in April ( yoy ), and capacity fell by 42%, according to the International Air Transport Association.  But, there is always someone out there who is going to figure out how to make the best out of a terrible situation, and that’s what one Russian air freight carrier has done.

Volga Dnepr has increased their sales by over 30% through April. How? They are not only delivering medical supplies all over the world, but also filling the void on Pork. You see, in addition to China suffering from Covid-19, they also had a particularly bad outbreak of African Swine Fever that decimated much of their pig population. Volga Dnepr has filled this void by flying in over 3000 breeding pigs on 747s.

Bloomberg also noted that the carrier is experiencing significant demand surges in medical PPE across varying geographical regions. They see these as temporary demand surges, but also commented on a trend proving to be more permanent. The pivot away from Chinese production dependency. Volga Dnepr sees this trend continuing to accelerate until at least year end.

*feature image courtesy of Volga Dnepr

Opinions, reviews, analyses & recommendations are the author’s alone, and have not been reviewed, endorsed or approved by any of these entities.

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