China's courier sector handles over 100 bln parcels so far this year

China's courier sector saw its delivery volume this year exceed 100 billion parcels on Tuesday, reaching the mark 71 days earlier than in 2023 and signaling a booming consumer market, according to the State Post Bureau (SPB).

This equates to an average of 71.43 packages per person in China, or 5,144 packages delivered every second.

The express delivery sector has become a key indicator of the country's economic health. Amid a steady economic recovery, the industry has set new records across three main metrics. In particular, the highest single-day delivery volume exceeded 580 million parcels, and the average monthly volume surpassed 13 billion parcels, while the sector's monthly revenue topped 100 billion yuan (about 14 billion U.S. dollars).

"This highlights the prosperity and continuous improvement in the quality and efficiency of China's express delivery sector. It also reflects the vitality and resilience of the country's economic development," said Wang Yuehan, director of the Department of Industrial Economics Research at the SPB's Development and Research Center.

Since the beginning of this year, the regional structure of the express delivery sector has seen continued optimization. In the first half of the year, China's central and western regions actively established distribution centers to enhance warehouse and distribution capabilities.

In the same period, the proportions of express delivery business volume in the eastern, central, and western regions accounted for 73 percent, 18.5 percent, and 8.5 percent of the national total, respectively. Compared to the first half of last year, the central and western regions saw increases of 1.3 and 0.9 percentage points, respectively.

China boasts a highly efficient logistics network that reaches even the most remote areas, with 234,000 delivery points nationwide and over 95 percent of villages covered by express delivery services. This summer, this network enabled next-day delivery of seasonal fruits from distant regions.

Technological innovation has further boosted delivery efficiency. In some cities, drones can deliver packages in about 10 minutes, while autonomous delivery vehicles have also significantly reduced delivery time.

Going forward, the SPB plans to enhance logistics hubs in urban clusters, improve rural logistics systems and expand international delivery services, as well as integrate the delivery chain with advanced manufacturing.

China has led the world in express delivery volume for 10 consecutive years.

China's courier sector handles over 100 bln parcels so far this year

China's automobile industry showed a growing trend in August, with both production and sales of vehicles increasing month on month, while those of new energy vehicles (NEVs) recorded a double-digit year-on-year growth, according to data from the China Association of Automobile Manufacturers on Tuesday.

In August, auto production and sales in China surpassed 2.49 million and 2.45 million units, respectively, showing month-on-month increases of 9 percent and 8.5 percent, with year-on-year decreases of 3.2 percent and 5 percent, indicating a smaller decline compared with the previous month.

During the January-August period, auto production and sales totaled about 18.67 million and 18.77 million units respectively, reflecting year-on-year growth of 2.5 percent and 3 percent, respectively.

In August, the production and sales of NEVs achieved 1.09 million and 1.10 million units, respectively, representing an increase of 29.6 percent and 30 percent year on year. The sales of NEVs in August account for 44.8 percent of the new vehicle sales in China.

In the first eight months of this year, the production of NEVs reached nearly 7.01 million units, rising 29 percent year on year. The sales of NEVs hit almost 7.04 million units, growing by 30.9 percent from a year earlier. The market share of NEVs in China reached 37.5 percent in the period.

On the export front, auto exports reached 511,000 units in August, marking a year-on-year increase of 25.4 percent. Among these, exports of NEVs totaled 110,000 units, showing a 22-percent growth year on year.

China's auto industry reports rising vehicle production, sales in August