- Cainiao’s sea freight will operate at least six times a week
- Products sold on AliExpress will arrive in South Korea in as fast as three days
- Shipping costs reduced by 30% compared to the traditional logistics approach
Cainiao Network, the logistics arm of Alibaba Group, has launched a direct sea freight route between China and South Korea, as parcel volumes surge.
AliExpress, the global retail online marketplace also part of Alibaba Group, parcel volumes increased by nearly 100% in the second half of 2021 compared to the same period last year.
Operating six times a week, the sea freight allows Korean consumers to receive parcels in five days for selected products after placing orders on AliExpress, with some areas as fast as three days .
Upon leaving ports in Shandong Province, the cargo ship will arrive in South Korea within 12 hours, reducing shipping costs by up to 30%.
Latest 2019 data showed that China is the largest import partner for South Korea, with a 22.2% share or US$108 billion. This has grown by 105% from a decade before in 2009, at 17.2% share or US$52.6 billion.
Part of the growth can be attributed to the rising eCommerce demand in South Korea, where AliExpress insights revealed that the most popular items are cosmetics and 3C devices, largely driven by competitive pricing and fast shipping.
“The launch of a direct sea freight route will accelerate the overall shipping efficiency from China to South Korea, further fueled by our full-chain logistics services including digitalized customs clearance and last mile delivery,” said William Xiong, Cainiao’s chief strategist and general manager of exports logistics.
Cainiao’s distribution centers are able to handle a peak volume up to 10 million orders, with cross-border network spanning over 200 Chinese cities, and more than 50 warehouses located in key cities to support exports.
In October 2020, Cainiao announced the launch of its logistics and supply chain services to support South Korean businesses. Leveraging its logistics technology and platform, Cainiao is able to connect merchants to logistics service providers to achieve greater cost efficiencies.
To further promote bilateral trade between South Korea and China, Cainiao inked an MOU with the Korea SMEs and Startups Agency (KOSME) to operate as the official logistics partner for small and medium-sized enterprises in South Korea in June 2021.
