DHL Hong Kong Air Trade Leading Index ("DTI") is a quarterly survey implemented by the Hong Kong Productivity Council ("HKPC"), and commissioned by DHL Express (Hong Kong) Limited ("DHL").
DTI is the first-of-its-kind in Hong Kong, offering publicly available market intelligence for local enterprises, especially SMEs which typically have limited resources or access to information, enabling all to take reference from a comprehensive business review of the sector in which they operate.
The Overall Index represents the air trade market outlook for the surveying quarter, in respect of import and (re-)export. The research also studies the underlying trends in business attributes, markets and air-freighted commodities, thus assisting local enterprises in arriving at a primed view of the business outlook of their markets.
DTI – Third Quarter of 2023
Release Date: 20 Jul, 2023
REPORT SUMMARY
In Q3 2023, Overall Air Trade Index retreated after a big jump last quarter under declining sales volume. However, it was still at a higher level compared with the time during the fifth wave of the pandemic which took place early last year.
- Exports showed a relatively strong drop which was mainly dragged down by Americas market and Food & Beverages.
- Only 15% of local air traders expected additional sales volume before the Golden Week in October.
- All sub-indices, markets and commodities suffered drops when compared with last quarter while online B2C registered growths in Product Variety and Urgent Shipment but slipped in Sales Volume. This aligns with the general trend that sales volume is the factor showing the largest drop.
- The removal of the mask mandate in Hong Kong in March 2023 enabled the society to resume normalcy in full. Along with this, 5 percentage points more air traders reported profitability improvement in Q2 2023. Looking back at the COVID-19 pandemic period, the start of COVID-19 in February 2020 hit local air traders the hardest with 68% reported deteriorated business performance and 10% reflected growth. Their profitability was getting better in the following quarters before the fifth wave of the pandemic (Q1 2022).
- With Hong Kong eyeing a green and sustainable future, zero emissions have emerged as one of the big trends in the city. 64% of local air traders revealed they were willing to take part in initiatives to reduce carbon emissions.
Mr Edmond Lai, Chief Digital Officer of HKPC, commented, “This quarter’s results align with the downtrend in External Merchandise Trade Statistics in April and May 2023 announced by C&SD# that the air trade industry in Hong Kong is facing challenges from the external environment. Retreats in indices were discovered in most markets, covering the majority of the air-freighted commodities. In particular, a larger drop was discovered in Americas which was dragged down by its (re-)export performance. As the risk of economic recession in the US persists, enterprises are advised to prepare themselves by proactively expanding into other markets to address mid-to-long-term challenges. On the other hand, we are pleased to see that nearly two-thirds of the surveyed air traders are willing to take part in reducing emissions. Given the HKSAR Government’s commitment to halving its carbon emissions by 2035, the air trade industry is set to become one of the key drivers of sustainable development. Enterprises are advised to start reviewing their daily operations for areas that can reduce their carbon footprint. HKPC will also support enterprises in setting appropriate carbon reduction targets and adopting more low-carbon technologies to facilitate the green transformation of industries.”
#Source: Census and Statistics Department
Download the latest report of DTI (PDF version) (Text-only version).
Download of DTI Quarterly Report
Quarter
|
Release Date
|
DTI – Third Quarter of 2023 (PDF version)
DTI – Third Quarter of 2023 (Text-only version) |
Jul 20, 2023 |
DTI – Second Quarter of 2023 (PDF version)
DTI – Second Quarter of 2023 (Text-only version) |
Apr 27, 2023 |
DTI – First Quarter of 2023 (PDF version)
DTI – First Quarter of 2023 (Text-only version) |
Jan 17, 2023 |
DTI – Fourth Quarter of 2022 (PDF version)
DTI – Fourth Quarter of 2022 (Text-only version) |
Oct 20, 2022 |
DTI – Third Quarter of 2022 (PDF version)
DTI – Third Quarter of 2022 (Text-only version) |
Jul 21, 2022 |
DTI – Second Quarter of 2022 (PDF version)
DTI – Second Quarter of 2022 (Text-only version) |
Apr 21, 2022 |
DTI – First Quarter of 2022 (PDF version)
DTI – First Quarter of 2022 (Text-only version) |
Jan 20, 2022 |
DTI - Fourth Quarter of 2021 (PDF version)
DTI - Fourth Quarter of 2021 (Text-only version) |
Oct 20, 2021 |
DTI - Third Quarter of 2021 (PDF version)
DTI - Third Quarter of 2021 (Text-only version) |
Jul 20, 2021 |
DTI - Second Quarter of 2021 (PDF version)
DTI - Second Quarter of 2021 (Text-only version) |
Apr 20, 2021 |
DTI - First Quarter of 2021 (PDF version)
DTI - First Quarter of 2021 (Text-only version) |
Jan 28, 2021 |
DTI - Fourth Quarter of 2020 (PDF version)
DTI - Fourth Quarter of 2020 (Text-only version) |
Oct 22, 2020 |
DTI - Third Quarter of 2020 (PDF version)
DTI - Third Quarter of 2020 (Text-only version) |
Jul 23, 2020 |
DTI - Second Quarter of 2020 (PDF version)
DTI - Second Quarter of 2020 (Text-only version) |
Apr 27, 2020 |
DTI - First Quarter of 2020 (PDF version)
DTI - First Quarter of 2020 (Text-only version) |
Feb 5, 2020 |
DTI - Fourth Quarter of 2019 (PDF version)
DTI - Fourth Quarter of 2019 (Text-only version) |
Nov 4, 2019 |
DTI - Third Quarter of 2019 (PDF version)
DTI - Third Quarter of 2019 (Text-only version) |
Jul 31, 2019 |
DTI - Second Quarter of 2019 (PDF version)
DTI - Second Quarter of 2019 (Text-only version) |
Apr 29, 2019 |
DTI - First Quarter of 2019 (PDF version)
DTI - First Quarter of 2019 (Text-only version) |
Jan 25, 2019 |
DTI - Fourth Quarter of 2018 (PDF version)
DTI - Fourth Quarter of 2018 (Text-only version) |
Nov 6, 2018 |
DTI - Third Quarter of 2018 (PDF version)
DTI - Third Quarter of 2018 (Text-only version) |
Jul 31, 2018 |
DTI - Second Quarter of 2018 (PDF version)
DTI - Second Quarter of 2018 (Text-only version) |
May 2, 2018 |
DTI - First Quarter of 2018 (PDF version)
DTI - First Quarter of 2018 (Text-only version) |
Jan 31, 2018 |
DTI - Fourth Quarter of 2017 (PDF version)
DTI - Fourth Quarter of 2017 (Text-only version) |
Nov 1, 2017 |
DTI - Third Quarter of 2017 (PDF version)
DTI - Third Quarter of 2017 (Text-only version) |
Jul 27, 2017 |
DTI - Second Quarter of 2017 (PDF version)
DTI - Second Quarter of 2017 (Text-only version) |
Apr 28, 2017 |
DTI - First Quarter of 2017 (PDF version)
DTI - First Quarter of 2017 (Text-only version) |
Jan 25, 2017 |
DTI - Fourth Quarter of 2016 (PDF version)
DTI - Fourth Quarter of 2016 (Text-only version) |
Nov 11, 2016 |
DTI - Third Quarter of 2016 (PDF version)
DTI - Third Quarter of 2016 (Text-only version) |
Aug 8, 2016 |
DTI - Second Quarter of 2016 (PDF version)
DTI - Second Quarter of 2016 (Text-only version) |
May 13, 2016 |
DTI - First Quarter of 2016 (PDF version)
DTI - First Quarter of 2016 (Text-only version) |
Feb 19, 2016 |
DTI - Fourth Quarter of 2015 (PDF version)
DTI - Fourth Quarter of 2015 (Text-only version) |
Nov 16, 2015 |
DTI - Third Quarter of 2015 (PDF version)
DTI - Third Quarter of 2015 (Text-only version) |
Aug 11, 2015 |
DTI - Second Quarter of 2015 (PDF version)
DTI - Second Quarter of 2015 (Text-only version) |
May 7, 2015 |
DTI - First Quarter of 2015 (PDF version)
DTI - First Quarter of 2015 (Text-only version) |
Feb 6, 2015 |
DTI - Final Quarter of 2014 (PDF version)
DTI - Final Quarter of 2014 (Text-only version) |
Nov 12, 2014 |
Methodology

Index Calculation: Index = [100 x (Percentage of samples responding "Positive") ] + [50 x (Percentage of samples responding "Neutral") ] + [0 x (Percentage of samples responding "Negative") ]
Readings

- Ratios of collected responses are used to form the indices.
- An index value above 50 indicates an overall positive outlook while a reading below 50 represents an overall negative outlook for the surveyed quarter.
- The further the reading is from 50, the more positive or negative the outlook is.
Demographics
- Respondents are Hong Kong-based companies with either inbound or outbound air trade. It includes Watches, Clocks & Jewellery, Apparel & Clothing Accessories, Electronic Products & Parts, Gifts, Toys & Houseware, Food & Beverage and Others (including courier items and other items that do not belong to the categories listed above).
- Over 600 samples are collected in each quarter.
- Sample companies are randomly selected from publicly available directories.
Disclaimer
This report contains survey result based on research findings. HKPC will not be liable for any loss, mistake, delay, action or non-action by viewers of this report.
Enquiry
For more details about the Index, please contact HKPC at tel. (852) 2788 5306.
FOLLOW US
SUBSCRIBE TO OUR NEWSLETTERS
Share the latest information of HKPC to your inbox
SIGNUP NOW