Panalpina Annual Report 2006

Reporting Regions
European Regional
Competence Center
Based in Basel
Amec Regional
Competence Center
Based in Dubai
Net revenue: CHF 4,418 million
Headcount: 7,529
Branches: 258
26 Panalpina Annual Report 2006
Europe / Africa / Middle East / CIS
Broad­based economic growth and
increased investment in the oil and gas
industry
In the largest of its reporting regions, Panalpina was able to exploit
the generally positive economic climate to full potential and capitalize
on the Group’s undisputed market leadership in the oil and gas sector
to boost net forwarding revenue for 2006 by an impressive 12.4%.
Panalpina achieved impressive growth in all Emea
areas. Major new orders were signed and existing
contracts extended not only in the oil and gas
industry, which has traditionally been of particular
importance in this region, but also in all other key
sectors.
Western Europe
A thriving economy and buoyant imports from the
booming Asian markets ensured strong revenues
in most West European countries, with the highest
growth experienced in Switzerland, Germany and
the British Isles.
In Switzerland, supply chain management services
recorded a particularly exceptional growth in the
year under review, as an increasing number of firms
chose to outsource their logistics. In response,
Panalpina installed a number of implant teams,
mainly within companies in the chemical and pharmaceutical
sectors. Furthermore, the Group successfully
defended its high market share in air and
ocean freight import services as well as ocean
freight export services. The Group was also successful
in achieving its goal of increasing the
proportion of customers from the SME sector.
Against a backdrop of the country’s strongest economic
performance since 2000, Panalpina achieved
very high growth in all core activities in Germany.
Major new orders were signed for ocean freight, and
also for air freight imports from Asia, particularly
in the retail and fashion sector. This positive trend
in freight volumes from Asia was echoed in the
transatlantic traffic between Germany and the US.
Significant new global accounts boosted air freight
exports to Japan by a third. At the end of the year,
Panalpina staff moved into the new, state­of­theart
logistics center in Hamburg. This has been built
to the highest safety standards, has direct access
to the port and will also act as a hub and depot for
the Group’s container business.
The UK and Ireland also saw very positive growth.
This was chiefly owing to a further rise in imports,
mainly from China, India and Vietnam. The segment
of smaller­to­mid­sized customers expanded
further, as it had in the previous year, while several
major customers were gained in the retail, chemical
and automotive sectors. Booming investment
in global oil production, and thus also in the North
Sea, led to sizeable new orders from suppliers to
this industry.
Italy and France, as well as the Iberian, Scandinavian
and Benelux countries, continued to perform
well in 2006, and contributed to the successful
result for this region. New business in the hi­tech,
retail and fashion and telecommunications sectors
resulted in a gratifying rise in revenues from
air and ocean freight.
Central and Eastern Europe
The gradually increasing financial strength of the
countries in this sub­region has led to a noticeable
rise in consumer spending, and consequently
greater demand for consumer goods. Panalpina
recorded a rise in imports, particularly from the
Far East.
The customer base, which used to consist chiefly
of companies from the hi­tech, automotive and
retail and fashion industries, expanded further. At
the start of 2006, new Panalpina branches were
set up in Warsaw, Wroclaw and Gdynia to serve the
Polish market.