China Post Group Corp, the country’s largest postal service provider with nearly 1 million employees, will expand its cross-border services from transporting packages on passenger aircraft and cargo flights to railway and shipping during the country’s 14th Five Year Plan (2021-25) period. Following changes in global supply chains, which have been disrupted by the Covid-19 pandemic, and the classification of international delivery products by value and priorities, freight train services will become a key part of supporting China Post’s international business in the coming years, said Zheng Shuangyin, Deputy General Manager of the International Business Department of China Post’s Parcel, Express and Logistics Business Unit. China Post this year has launched new train routes linking Chinese cities such as Wuhan in Hubei province, Guangzhou in Guangdong province, Chengdu in Sichuan province, Xi’an in Shaanxi province and Urumqi in Xinjiang with many European cities, he said.
The target customers of the freight train service are mainly concentrated in the mid-to-high-end manufacturing sector that has seen high demand for stable supply chains, and are becoming diversified over time, the Beijing-based group said. Because of the pandemic, major airlines around the world have either suspended or reduced flights. China Post organized 22 block train services from Chongqing, Yiwu, Zhengzhou in Henan province and Dongguan in Guangdong province, and shipped about 16,000 metric tons of mail, industrial goods and daily necessities to 36 European destinations through Poland and other countries in 2020.
With the growth of the Belt and Road Initiative, the routes and frequency of the China-Europe freight train service have continued to increase, Zheng said, adding the average running time of the trains is 13 days, which is more than 20 days faster than ocean freight, and the price is only one-fifth that of airfreight. The cost, time limits and service level of the China-Europe freight train service have showed strong market competitiveness and popularity. Jiang Yanzhao, Chair of Rail Contact Committee of the Universal Postal Union, said China’s efforts to improve international railway shipping rules and standards, together with the World Customs Organization, relevant international railway organizations and countries, will ensure the world’s supply chain and provide a better platform for export oriented companies to have another convenient option to ship their goods.
Backed by more than 30 cargo flights and 170 trains, China Post’s profit soared 12.5% year-on-year to CNY60.64 billion in 2020. The company’s first half profit was the highest in the past five years. Apart from adding air and rail cargo postal services, China Post also reached agreements with postal authorities in Japan, New Zealand and Israel in the first quarter to conduct maritime postal delivery services by partnering with China COSCO Shipping Corp, another central SOE and the nation’s largest shipping company, since the second quarter of last year, the China Daily reports.
