Deutsche Post DHL has declined to comment on a report that it is investigating a listing in HongKong for its DHL Express business.
The Hong Kong Economic Journal reported on Monday that DHL Express was considering listingshares in Hong Kong and had invited listing proposals from investment banks, citing unnamedsources. It claimed that the listing plan was still in a very preliminary stage, and it was unclearwhat assets might be listed.
A spokesman told CEP-research that, as a matter of principle, the company did not comment onmarket rumours. He also declined to respond to a direct question on whether Deutsche Post DHL wasinvestigating or considering a listing in Hong Kong for its DHL Express business, on the groundsthat it was a question linked to a market rumour.
However, he said that Deutsche Post DHL had no stated strategy of seeking to raise capital inthe markets, and had not publicly discussed any intention to do so to either shareholders orinvestors.
Like other global express and logistics operators, the group has made no secret of itsambition to capitalise on the rapidly growing Asian markets, especially through its DHL divisions.In its first-quarter report for 2011, the group said “the Asia Pacific region continues to drivegrowth in the express business”. In the first quarter of 2011, its express division invested atotal of €82 million, mainly in Europe and Asia, with the focus there on India and China. This wasalmost double the €41 million of the previous year.
The DHL divisions, Express, Supply Chain and Global Forwarding & Freight, now make up anincreasingly important part of Deutsche Post DHL group revenues and profits. In the 2010 financialyear, the group’s DHL divisions for the first time made the largest contribution to consolidatednet profits, boosted by especially high growth in booming markets such as Asia. After achieving ahigh-than-expected €2.2 billion EBIT for the 2010, financial year, the group told shareholders thatit anticipated that consolidated EBIT of between €2.2 billion and €2.4 billion in the currentfinancial year, with the DHL divisions expected to contribute €1.6 billion to €1.7 billion ofthis.
