Consultant’s Insight: JD Logistics to expand express beyond Asia

JD Logistics is expanding its express routes as competition heats up for quicker cross-border deliveries ahead of Singles Day and the yearend holiday season. Focusing on e-commerce, JD Logistics in October launched express delivery service from China to seven Southeast Asia countries: Brunei; Indonesia; Malaysia; Philippines; Singapore; Thailand; and Vietnam. [caption id="attachment_57145807" align="alignright" width="242"] Cathy Roberson, Cargo Facts Consulting senior consultant and Cargo Facts columnist[/caption] This expansion follows the company’s September launch of services to South Korea and Japan. E-commerce in Asia FedEx, UPS and DHL have also expanded their express services within Asia and ex-Asia. However, FedEx and UPS, in particular, have struggled with pricing cross-border e-commerce cargo. Express carriers have seen volume increase thanks to business from Chinese e-tailers Temu and Shein . “We’ve been very strategic in making sure that the relationship [with Temu and Shein] is mutually beneficial,” FedEx Chief Customer Officer Brie Carere told analysts in September. “They will not be a significant growth driver for us, and we’re not planning on that.” Indeed, UPS learned its lesson in the second quarter of 2024 when Temu and Shein volume caused a drop in revenue per piece . “We’re seeing growth in the expansion of our service out of Asia to Europe and throughout intra-Asia, we’ve made the lane faster [and we see] record fees growing,” UPS Executive Vice President Kate Gutmann, who oversees International, Healthcare and Supply Chain Solutions, said on an Oct. 24 call with analysts. However, JD Logistics is more akin to Amazon as it offers an online retail platform and provides a supply chain network that rivals traditional express providers. “We achieved cost reduction through JD’s scale effects and tech-driven supply chain innovations, which will effectively eliminate unnecessary costs and genuinely reduce prices,” JD.com Chief Executive Sandy Ran Xu said on the company’s Aug. 15 Q2 earnings call. However, Amazon has yet to expand into intra-Asia express services, despite selling in the region. It’s within this region that JD Logistics’ strength lies in offering low-cost services. Expanding beyond Asia JD Logistics plans to extend its express network beyond Asia and into Europe, the Middle East and North America. It currently relies on third-party airlines. Earlier this year, JD Airlines, the cargo airline of JD Logistics, announced its plan to add four 737-800BCFs to its arsenal in 2024, bringing the company’s fleet to ten aircraft. It plans to extend its international express delivery services from China to about eighty countries and regions by yearend. [caption id="attachment_56868598" align="aligncenter" width="933"] AerCap delivered unit 32688 to JD at the end of April. (Courtesy/AerCap)[/caption] In addition, JD Logistics announced plans to double its overseas warehouse space by the end of 2025. As of June 2023, JD Logistics operated nearly 100 bonded, direct mail and overseas warehouses globally, totaling close to 1 million square meters. JD Logistics is focused on expanding its presence in Europe and the United States and establishing “collaborative supply chain networks” capable of delivering fulfillment services within twenty-four hours in several regions, according to an Oct. 17 announcement. Cross-border e-commerce in China In 2023, China experienced a 15.6% year-over-year increase in cross-border e-commerce import-export volumes, according to China’s State Council. The growth was driven by a 19.6% YoY rise in exports and a 3.9% YoY increase in imports. Within this growth, Asian express providers such as JD Logistics will play a pivotal role in terms of lower-priced express options, particularly as JD Logistics plans its global expansion.

Consultant’s Insight: JD Logistics to expand express beyond Asia

747Fs reenter service with new operators for peak

Poste Italiane signs first 737-800F deal with BBAM

Related Posts

FedEx tops estimates while warning of trade policy pressure

FedEx’s Richard Smith to participate in main fireside chat at Cargo Facts Symposium 2026

UPS boosts Mexico automotive network

Poste Italiane signs first 737-800F deal with BBAM

Cargo Facts Free Newsletters

Cargo Facts Connect Podcast

Follow Us

Welcome Back!

Retrieve your password