'Double Eleven' test for courier firms

This year's "Double Eleven" (Nov 11) shopping frenzy has set new records in China. All e-commerce companies have made preparations for the occasion, and Alibaba, the founder of "Double Eleven Day", attracted hundreds of millions of netizens thanks to its extensive campaign in 200 countries and regions.

The State Post Bureau has said the "special day" this year will generate more than 510 million mails and packages, a year-on-year increase of 48 percent, and the maximum daily delivery may be more than 90 million, a 39 percent increase than 2013.

Express delivery companies, too, have prepared well for the "Double Eleven Day". This year, courier companies have opened 50,000 new branches in rural areas and hired 200,000 more people to deliver the mails and packages. And to help customers, express delivery companies have upgraded their information networks to provide detailed and timely information.

The express delivery sector is a pillar of the e-commerce industry, and it is becoming increasingly important for China's economic development because of its fast-paced growth. Until Oct 20 this year, express delivery companies in the country had delivered up to 10 billion mails and packages, overtaking their US counterparts and making China the "express delivery capital" of the world.

Three factors have contributed to the rapid expansion of the express delivery industry in China. First is the fast growth of the e-commerce industry. The listing of China's leading e-commerce companies such as Alibaba and Jingdong in the US this year has boosted the financial capacity of the industry to offer improved services to consumers.

The rapid growth of e-commerce has fostered the expansion of the express delivery industry. The correlation is evident in the past eight years' figures: online sales increased from 36 billion yuan ($5.87 billion) in 2006 to 1.89 trillion yuan in 2013, with a corresponding increase in the express delivery industry's revenue from 30 billion yuan to 144.2 billion yuan.

The second factor is the implementation of positive policies for the logistics industry to promote e-commerce and help the express delivery industry. Thanks to such policies, more listed companies are expected to enter the market.