UPS is looking to open a facility in Zhengzhou, the capital of central China’s Henan province,according to local media reports.
The Henan Daily reported that the US integrator had signed a memorandum of understanding (MOU)with the local government to set up a Zhengzhou-based branch for package delivery and logisticservices, in order to tap into the region’s growing express delivery industry. It said the localgovernment planned to build Zhengzhou into a new aviation hub for China.
Daniel Brutto, president of UPS International, was quoted as saying at Tuesday’s signingceremony of the MOU that Zhengzhou’s central location in China would facilitate UPS’s expansion. Headded that UPS had invested heavily in China, and that its local operations had maintaineddouble-digit growth, even during the global financial crisis.
A UPS spokesman told CEP-Research: “UPS has entered into a MOU with Henan Provincial People’sGovernment as part of our China expansion plans. The MOU documented UPS’s possible intent tohopefully contribute to the province’s goal to develop the air express industry and make Zhengzhoua major hub city for Central China. UPS is always interested in being where its customers areand in serving its customers better. It is premature for us to provide any further details at thistime.”
China’s express delivery industry has experienced extremely rapid growth, topping 10 millionparcels delivered per day at the end of last year. The figure represents the third largest volumeglobally after the United States and Japan, according to statistics from China’s State PostBureau.
Russian cargo airline AirBridgeCargo recently announced it was increasing the frequency of itsB747 freighter services to Zhengzhou to three times per week. AirBridgeCargo expects a highproportion of its 112 tonnes capacity per flight from the Chinese city to be filled with hi-techcargo from the large IT production plants in the region.
Situated in north-central China, Zhengzhou is the capital and largest city of Henan provincewith a population of 8.6 million people. It serves as the political, economic, technological, andeducational centre of the province and is also a major transport hub for central China.
