Hong Kong SAR, China, 20 December 2021 — FedEx Express (FedEx), a subsidiary of FedEx Corp. (NYSE: FDX) and one of the world’s largest express transportation companies, has strengthened its network and e-commerce capabilities in preparation for yet another busy holiday season in the Asia Pacific, Middle East and Africa (AMEA) region.
The e-commerce boom accelerated by COVID-19 is expected to continue. The latest statistics in Hong Kong show that the value of online retail sales in October 2021, provisionally estimated at HKD 2.5 billion, increased by 24.9% compared to the same month in 2020. In the first ten months of 2021 taken together, the provisional estimation of online retail value sales increased by more than 40% compared with the same period in 20201. In the upcoming holiday season, global online spending is estimated to increase by 11% year-on-year to USD 910 billion2. In Asia Pacific, a region that accounts for nearly 60% of online retail sales3, online shopping has already picked up. The busy holiday season, like the Double-11 shopping festival, amassed staggering volumes of online sales, spurring further growth of retail activity across the region. These are positive indicators that shoppers may have a bigger appetite for spending during the forthcoming Christmas and Chinese New Year holiday.
With the exponential growth of e-commerce and the soaring shipping volumes associated with it, FedEx is expecting the 2021 peak season to meet or exceed the unprecedented 2020 holiday season. Supply chain challenges, including ocean freight, are also adding to the demand for air cargo capacity as businesses replenish stock levels in time for the holiday season. In the AMEA region, the company has taken steps including workforce additions, facility expansions, network optimization, and innovative e-commerce solutions to meet the needs of consumers. For businesses and customers in Hong Kong, FedEx is also optimizing its services to ensure greater convenience, connectivity and flexibility.
“Hong Kog’s e-commerce industry continues to enjoy vigorous and robust growth in the last decade. While the city retains its importance as one of the prime logistics hubs in Asia, we remain committed to the Hong Kong market and our customers in Hong Kong,” said Anthony Leung, managing director, Hong Kong and Macau of FedEx Express. “We are continually strengthening our operational capabilities and innovating our products and services to meet the changing needs of local businesses and SMEs, especially for the holiday season. We are confident that our expanded network with improved service reliability and suite of e-commerce solutions will support e-tailers looking to cater to their customers with fast, flexible and cost-efficient deliveries during the busy festive seasons, and assist them in navigating the complex supply chain landscape.”
- Added capacity and facilities: FedEx has beefed up its network capacity by adding six new intercontinental flights on high-demand lanes, connecting the Asia Pacific with the United States and Europe4. Among the new flights includes the FedEx trans-Pacific flight connecting Hong Kong to the United States. Adding a daily capacity of 140,000 lbs. (64 tons), this flight operates 5 days a week. Departing from Taipei, it connects Hong Kong to Indianapolis via Anchorage. With around 56 flights in and out of Hong Kong per week, the expanded network provides local customers with improved capacity, reliable and increased connectivity and resilience for the holiday season. FedEx opened a new gateway facility in Clark, the Philippines, in October that will help support the growing e-commerce demand of bulk shipments and large items coming in and out of Asia during the holiday period5.
- All out on e-commerce: To empower e-tailers with instant access to FedEx robust e-commerce portfolios and affordable shipping solutions without switching platforms or accounts, FedEx launched the FedEx Compatible and Alliance program by teaming up with leading e-commerce platforms across the Asia Pacific. The company also introduced a new time-defined shipping solution - FedEx International Connect Plus (FICP). This combines competitive speed with attractive prices to empower e-tailers across ten markets, including Hong Kong, to address their consumers’ evolving needs for value-for-money international shipping services while ensuring shipments will be delivered within 1 to 5 business days within the region.
- Improved visibility and personalized services: In anticipation of end consumers’ growing focus on the traceability of their holiday items and the increased preference for personalized delivery services, FedEx enhanced its FedEx Delivery Manager International (FDMi).This interactive e-commerce delivery solution allows customized delivery options, timings, and locations. E-merchants can offer their customers the ability to track packages, get alerts with the FedEx Mobile app, and check the status of incoming deliveries and outgoing shipments. FedEx also provides flexible delivery offerings such as pick-up or returns within its retail networks. Starting from December 2021, FDMi is expanding to cover all locations in Hong Kong, allowing residential customers to customize their delivery options for inbound shipments. Offering e-commerce customers an array of benefits, this expansion will propel the ongoing growth within this important industry in Hong Kong.
1 https://www.censtatd.gov.hk/en/press_release_detail.html?id=4926
2 2021: Adobe Forecasts Record Online Holiday Spending Season as Supply Chain Issues Persist
3 https://www.digitalcommerce360.com/article/asia-ecommerce-top-retailers/
4 https://newsroom.fedex.com/newsroom/fedex-express-increases-capacity-from-asia-pacific-ahead-of-year-end-holiday-peak/
5 https://newsroom.fedex.com/newsroom/new-fedex-clark-gateway-facility-opens-boosting-support-for-philippine-businesses-and-retail-freight-amidst-e-commerce-growth/