ZONES-

#1- Qantara West snaps up another Chinese investment: Chinese bag and luggage manufacturer Comfily Hong Kong Co inked a contract with Egypt’s Suez Canal Economic Zone (SCZone) to develop a USD 20 mn factory in the Qantara West Industrial Zone, according to a statement. The facility — scheduled to open by the end of next year —- is slated to be developed on an area spanning 80k sqm and generate some 2k direct jobs.

Export is the name of the game, with 80% of the 22 mn pieces of annual output earmarked for export and 20% fated for the local market. The project will primarily manufacture luggage, alongside associated bags, fabric materials, and accessories.

Comfily’s sister company Hangzhou Henneway Travel Goods is also in the process of setting up a Qantara West project, with the company — whose client bands include Samsonite, Swissgear, Travelite, and Delsey — currently building a USD 50 mn luggage factory that is set to officially begin operations in 1Q 2026.

DATA POINT- The new project brings Qantara West’s total number of contracted projects to 22, with a combined investment cost of USD 623.5 mn and the expectation that 32.6k new jobs will be created.

A textile hub for Chinese investors: A long list of Chinese players have inked agreements to set up textile factories in the Qantara West Industrial Zone, including Shaoxing Beiqi Textile, Hightex Co., Ltd Hangzhou, GS Global Sourcing, Guangdong Hongxin Textile, Top New Garment Group, Jiangsu Guotai, and Di Seta.

#2- Sohar Freezone to establish low-carbon plant: Oman’s Sohar Port and Freezone has inked a land lease agreement with Matrix Alloys to establish a ferrochrome plant at an investment cost of USD 10 mn, according to a press release. The facility — encompassing 2.2 hectares — will produce 20k tons of micro-carbon and low-carbon ferrochrome — an iron and chromium alloy — annually to meet demand of foreign markets, namely Europe, Japan, South Korea, and India. The project’s first phase is expected to launch by 2026.

#3-Modon + Panattoni to cooperate on Jeddah warehouses: The Saudi Authority for Industrial Cities and Technology Zones (Modon) signed a SAR 100 mn MoU with US-based logistics developer Panattoni to build and operate first-class warehouses on a 50k sqm site in Jeddah, the authority said in a post on X.

ICYMI- Modon attracted over SAR 24 bn in new investments in 2024, up 38% y-o-y. It also signed a total of 10 industrial, investment, and logistics contracts worth SAR 350 mn on the sidelines of the Saudi Food Show earlier this month.

AVIATION-

#1- Emirates and Air China agreed to cooperate more across their respective cargo operations as well as develop a mutual codeshare on select routes, building on the pair’s existing interline agreement, according to a statement. The agreement — signed on the sidelines of the World Air Transport Summit — aims to streamline travel links between the two countries as the airlines seek to evaluate how to coordinate flight schedules as well as adjust minimum connecting times.

REMEMBER- Emirates is kicking off flights to Shenzhen in mid-2025, as part of plans to increase its air traffic to China by 40% on the back of rising demand, with plans to also launch daily non-stop flights to Hangzhou effective 30 July. The airline already travels to Beijing, Guangzhou and Shanghai.

#2- Emirates SkyCargo launches dedicated engine transport solution: Emirates SkyCargo has introduced Aircraft Engines, a new cargo product tailored for the transport of high-value, time-sensitive aviation parts, according to a company statement. The offering provides specialist handling, certified loadmasters, shock-absorbing dollies, priority loading, and real-time tracking via Emirates’ control tower. The service is part of the carrier’s newly launched Aerospace and Engineering vertical, targeting customers in the aviation, defense, and space sectors.

#3- Swissport launched ground handling services for low-cost carrier Air Arabia at 13 Saudi airports simultaneously, according to a press release. The expansion includes major cities such as Riyadh, Jeddah, Dammam, Madinah, Al Qassim, Al Ula, Hail, Al Jouf, Tabuk, Yanbu, Taif, Abha, and Jizan. The company currently handles check-in, baggage, aircraft cleaning, and cargo while considering plans to add aircraft cleaning and lounge operations.

#4- Dubai-based commercial maintenance, repair, and operation (MRO) provider DTX Group has launched its operations, according to a DTX statement. The group currently operates a parts trading business in the USA and two MRO facilities in Brazil. DTX is on track to roll out a new regional MRO facility 3Q 2025, with additional expansion targeted in Africa and Europe.

Background: DTX Group, headed up by Hussein Lookmanjee, was formerly the international arm of Drayton Aerospace. Lookmanjee is now the sole owner of DTX Group, having fully divested from Drayton after British private equity firm Lion Capital bought his remaining equity, and Drayton Aerospace’s entities outside of China fall under DTX’s remit now.

STARTUP WATCH-

Qatar’s ShipBee raises QAR 855k in pre-seed funds: Qatari digital logistics platform ShipBee has secured QAR 855k (USD 235k) in a pre-seed funding round led by business consultancy GrowthX, with additional contributions from two angel investors, according to a press release. The funding — along with QAR 150k (c. USD 41k) in bootstrapping by the founders — brings the startup’s value to roughly QAR 3.6 mn (c. USD 989k), with institutional and angel investors contributing. The funds are earmarked for enhancing ShipBee’s growth, scaling up operations, supporting tech development, team expansion, and marketing.

About ShipBee: The Doha-based startup enables users to book transportation vehicles — such as flat bed trailers, pickup trucks, and motorcycles — via an online platform that leverages AI functionality. The platform is geared toward customers and businesses active in the e-commerce space.

PORTS-

Oman pursues national port system: Oman’s Transport, Communications, and Information Technology Ministry (MTCIT) has inked a 15-year concession agreement with investment outfit Novel Muscat International to establish and manage the National Port Community System (NPCS), Muscat Daily reported on Monday. The rollout is set to commence immediately — progressing in phases across Oman’s main ports, airports, freezones, and border crossings.

NPCS? Port community systems are digital collaborative platforms that allow the smooth exchange of information between a given port’s stakeholders, including port management, logistics companies, freight forwarders, and others. They aim to reduce red tape and paperwork, resulting in faster decisionmaking and streamlined operations.

DIGITILIZATION-

Etihad Cargo launches digital shipment tracking system: Abu Dhabi-based Etihad Cargo has partnered up with US software company Tag-N-Trac to launch a smart shipment tracking solution — SmartTrack — to increase air cargo visibility to customers, according to a statement. SmartTrack — which will provide real-time shipment location, data management, and optimization using smart label technology for shipment monitoring through labels with GPS — will be available on Etihad Cargo’s website and app through their control tower, although no timeline on the integration was disclosed.

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