Some large freight forwarders gain from weak economy, others eye rail transport

Some large freight forwarders are prospering in light of the weak economy, while others are gearing up to benefit from an anticipated increase in rail forwarding following Poland's accession to the European Union (EU). Poland's freight forwarding sector is based mainly on truck transport. Despite road transport registering an average growth rate of 6% last year, industry experts pointed out that the figure belies the true state of the industry, which has suffered a blow from the economic downturn. "The true condition of the market is a reflection of the general state of the economy," said Krzysztof Mielniczuk, a trade and foreign cooperation specialist at freight forwarder and customs agency C. Hartwig Katowice. "When the economy is doing well, product exchange increases, and forwarders have more work. (But) right now the situation is average."

Silver lining Nevertheless, the dismal economic situation has been advantageous for some large, well-established companies since manufacturers and retailers are now more likely to outsource their transport requests to freight forwarding companies. The country's leading logistical operators also are farming out their freight forwarding to other firms. "Paradoxically, the current (economic) situation is good for our sector because companies have to carefully analyze their costs," said Monika Pachniak-Radzińska, the market director of Spedpol, which offers freight forwarding as part of a wider range of logistical services. "(And) it allows us to change our fixed costs into variable costs, providing more flexibility when dealing with clients." Poland's anticipated EU accession in 2004 or 2005 brings with it a potential increase in freight forwarding by rail, especially since inadequate roads and increasing ecological awareness draw more attention to this option, market experts said. "Once you have access to the infrastructure and connections to the major train depots in Western Europe as well as attractive prices, taking over the market is only a matter of time," Mielniczuk said. But if Polish State Railways (PKP) will not be able to keep its financial problems at bay or improve its infrastructure with new warehouses and modern loading docks, foreign operators would no doubt enter the rail transport market, said Henryk Klimkiewicz, the president of transport consultancy TOR. "This will not be a move against Polish operators," he said. "They would simply fill the gap in demand."