DHL, a world leading express shipping and logistics company,
yesterday announced it will spend $175 million to build its North
Asia express transferring hub at Shanghai Pudong International
Airport.
The announcement means the airport will be the first in the
world with two international express transferring hubs. United
Parcel Service Inc (UPS) is also building its international air hub
at Pudong.
The DHL North Asia hub, scheduled to be completed in the second
half of 2010, will serve China and the vibrant North Asia region,
which will contribute 30 percent of global express volume by 2015,
the German courier said.
"It will play a catalytic role to boost DHL's growth in Asia
Pacific and give us an even greater competitive edge in managing
the huge and complex global trade that is being routed to this
region," Dan McHugh, DHL Asia Pacific's CEO, said.
Shanghai beat 133 airports after two years of rigorous analysis
DHL undertook before choosing its North Asia hub. The company said
volume growth rate and flight connections were two major
criteria.
Shanghai was a promising option because of booming commercial
activities in the Yangtze River Delta region, Stephen Charles
Fenwick, senior vice-president of DHL Express Asia Pacific,
said.
The Yangtze River Delta, one of China's major economic growth
engines, contributed 41 percent of the country's total trade volume
last year.
DHL's decision came as the Shanghai government tries to build
Pudong International Airport into an international air cargo
hub.
The airport, which currently handles 63 percent of China's
international cargo, is busy expanding its capacity and will be
able to handle 6 million tons of cargo by 2015, Wu Nianzu, the
Shanghai Airport Authority's chairman and president, said.
The DHL North Asia hub will be located near the airport's third
runway, due to be completed by the end of the year, and will cover
a total area of 88,000 sq m.
DHL's US rival FedEx is also building a regional hub in
Guangzhou next year. FedEx was previously based mainly in the
Philippines.
(China Daily November 27, 2007)
