FedEx Express, a subsidiary of FedEx Corp., will offer guaranteed next-day deliveries within China for the first time beginning May 28. The move underscores the increasing sophistication of transportation and logistics services in the country.
Combined with the company’s international express service, Memphis, TN-based FedEx said the new domestic offering will connect businesses within China and around the world. FedEx connects more than 90 percent of China’s GDP to the rest of the world through its global network.
The new domestic services – expected to be fully operational in June 2007 – will serve China’s burgeoning market with next-business-day, time-definite overnight delivery service to 19 of China’s biggest cities and a day-definite service to more than 200 cities throughout the country. Real-time package status tracking will let customers know where their shipments are along the way.
Companies across China, including those in second- and third-tier cities, will benefit from increased domestic reach, greater connectivity between cities and reliable, time-definite express service. FedEx will offer a money-back guarantee for the next-business-day express service.
“We are well positioned to capitalize on China’s transition to a consumer economy through its rapidly growing middle class,” said Michael L. Ducker, president of FedEx Express International, in a statement. “Our worldwide transportation network supports China’s supply chains, which are driving long-term economic growth for the country.”
The company said up to 90 percent of existing FedEx customers in China have expressed the need for a reliable domestic-express service, a strong indication to many companies that domestic-express service in China is a catalyst for growth and competitiveness.
Similar to the U.S. express hub-and-spoke system, the domestic express network includes a system centered at the Hangzhou Xiaoshan International Airport in the Zhejiang province of eastern China. The newly established hub will initially sort up to 9,000 packages an hour.
A domestic carrier, Okay Airways, will provide the domestic air transportation. Using three Boeing 737 freighters, Okay Airways will operate an air cargo network within China in support of FedEx. The aircraft will operate two circular routes nightly, covering the country’s major airports.
