Photo/Shetuwang

July 30 (NBD) -- On July 29, YTO Express (International) Holdings Limited ("YTO International"), together with OTP Express, took the industry lead in launching a service called Global Flash Delivery in China.

The newly launched one-on-one international instant delivery service is designed to deliver dispatches to receipts overseas in 10-36 hours, and targets high-tech electronics companies, fashion brands, automakers, and other time-sensitive customers. The service is now available in Northeast China, North China, East China and South China.

The delivery speed is undoubtedly fasinating, but the charge ranging from 20,000 yuan (2,904 U.S. dollars) to 60,000 yuan (8,713 U.S. dollars) is somehow daunting. The service fee varies depending on the destination, quantity and products delivered, said YTO International's parent YTO Express (600233.SH) to National Business Daily (NBD).

YTO Express was established 15 years ago and went public on the Shanghai Stock Exchange in 2016, being the first listed express company in China.  

NBD noticed that while seeing a decline in the ranking of delivery volumes in China, YTO Express saw its revenue from international business rocket to 222 million yuan (32.2 million U.S. dollars) in 2017, with the year-over-year growth rate hiking to 25,155 percent, according to annual reports by YTO Express. In 2018, the figure ballooned to 1.2 billion yuan, representing a rise of 437 percent in comparison with the prior year and accounting for 4.3 percent of the company's total revenue.

Through the launch of the "Global Flash Delivery" service, YTO Express aims for a further expansion in the global parcel delivery market. 

According to a 2019 report by Qianzhan Industry Research Institute, in 2018, the number of cross-border express deliveries swelled to 11.1 billion pieces, up 34 percent from the previous year, 7.4 percent higher than the overall growth rate of the express delivery industry in China. There still sees considerable room for growth because the amount of cross-border express deliveries only accounted for 2.2 percent of the total express delivery industry in China in the year. 

However, challenges remain in the global flash delivery market.

Industry expert Zhao Xiaomin told NBD that in both China and overseas markets, there is a huge market for flash deliveries, especially with the commercial adoption of drones. At the same time, Zhao pointed out that the customized global delivery service requires thumping air transportation capacity and also faces tremendous challenges in terms of culture, legislation and consumption habits.

Email: lansuying@nbd.com.cn