China Southern Cargo launched a new regular all-cargo service linking Guangzhou, Auckland, and Sydney on July 4. This is the first direct scheduled cargo route between the Chinese mainland and New Zealand operated by a domestic airline.
This route also represents China Southern's inaugural fifth freedom cargo service, with reciprocal fifth freedom rights enabling cargo operations between Australia and New Zealand.
In recent years, trade cooperation between China and New Zealand has deepened across sectors including agricultural products, electronics, and consumer goods. In the first quarter of 2025 alone, total trade reached 10.51 billion NZD (6.4 billion USD), marking an 8.9% year-on-year growth.
To meet the growing freight demand from Australia and New Zealand, China Southern Cargo has launched this new dedicated cargo route to New Zealand, which will be regularly operated by Boeing 777 freighters.
This route also marks China Southern's first cargo service operating under fifth freedom rights. The fifth freedom, also known as third-country traffic rights, allows an airline from one country to carry passengers or cargo between two other countries during a flight on an international route it operates.
This enables China Southern to carry cargo between Sydney and Auckland independently, boosting operational flexibility and strengthening the airline's role as a regional freight hub.