Speaking to reporters at the Shenzhen hub official opening on 18 May, Brutto, who is responsible for air freight network management and global brokerage services, cited reports that the intra-Asia trade will double by 2015.
“So, it makes sense for UPS to sort and dispatch the packages of this (intra-Asia) trade,†he said, adding that China was in the driver’s seat to spur this growth in the next couple of years.
With an initial investment of US$180 million, the 89,000 square-metre site is UPS’ largest facility in Asia and in building the facility, UPS is also recognising China’s importance to the growth of the Asia Pacific region, amid an improving regional economy, Derek Woodward, president of UPS Asia Pacificregion, said.
UPS’ Asia volume grew more than 20 per cent in the first quarter with the fastest growth from the region’s smalland medium-sized enterprises. Shenzhen, which is UPS’ second hub in China after Shanghai, will focus on intra- Asia traffic, which is boosted by a bilateral trade agreement between China and ASEAN that came into effect this year.
Releasing preliminary figures from its soon-to-bereleased UPS’ Business Monitor of Asian SMEs, Woodward says the intra-Asia business is expected to grow by an average 12.2 per cent up till 2020, and UPS’ Shenzhen hub is expected to play a critical role in this anticipated Asian growth.
“Of the nearly 70 per cent of companies surveyed, 8 per cent of their business is with the EU, 6 per cent North America and their intra-Asia business is booming,†he says.
Asked whether the volcanic ash cloud which hampered air traffic in Europe presented any issues for UPS’ business, Brutto said when northern Europe was shut down by the volcanic ash, UPS flew all its consignments to Cologne and redistributed them by road, losing only two days of service in the process.
“I can’t predict the future but at this stage we are still very confident in our growth in Asia to Europe,†he said.
UPS plans to add two aircraft in Hong Kong and 11 in Shanghai from 1 June to tap growth in China. It currently operates23 aircraft within the Asia Pacific region.