Express Air Cargo Development in the Pearl River Delta Region: Present and Future

This dissertation, "Express Air Cargo Development in the Pearl River Delta Region: Present and Future" by Yee-man, Winnie, Tang, 鄧綺雯, was obtained from The University of Hong Kong (Pokfulam, Hong Kong) and is being sold pursuant to Creative Commons: Attribution 3.0 Hong Kong License. The content of this dissertation has not been altered in any way. We have altered the formatting in order to facilitate the ease of printing and reading of the dissertation. All rights not granted by the above license are retained by the author. Abstract: Abstract of dissertation entitled Express Air Cargo Development in the Pearl River Delta Region - Present and Future Submitted by Winnie, Tang Yee-Man for the degree of Master of Arts in Transport Policy and Planning at the University of Hong Kong in June 2007 Express Air Cargo industry or more commonly called Express Delivery Services (EDS) was originated in the United States during the late 1960s in response to the increasing demand for fast and reliable document delivery services. The industry grew rapidly after the deregulation of the U.S. air cargo industry in the late 1970s. The advent of the internet in the 1990s and the increasing demand from manufacturers and retailers for just-in-time (JIT) delivery caused the EDS companies' business expansion to include small parcels and freight services. As a result, the service network of the global players keep on expanding within US domestic and ultimately extending to the international markets. EDS companies, in particular the global players, set their foot on China soil during 1980s when China adopted economic reform and open door policy to the world markets. However, foreign companies desire to setup their China business establishment were required to signed Joint Venture agency agreements with a Chinese investor. Most often the partner investor was either a state-owned enterprise (eg. Sinotrans is the joint venture partner of DHL) or a private-owned enterprise (eg. Tianjin Datian W. Group Co., Ltd - Federal Express JV partner). In December 2006, China marks the fifth anniversary of its accession to the World Trade Organization "WTO," it is now possible for logistic, freight forwarding and EDS companies to set up their wholly foreign-owned enterprise independently in China. As China is gradually opening the logistic market to the world, this paper aims to provide an in-depth knowledge of Express Delivery Services industry and how the companies operate in the Pearl River Delta region under the current China Postal regulatory framework. The recent proposed postal reform has ignited a lot of debates and issues among the industry players and various government bodies. We will review in this dissertation its impact to the present and future development of this fastest growing industry in the new-age China. DOI: 10.5353/th_b3834977 Subjects: Express service - China - Pearl River Delta Aeronautics, Commercial - China - Pearl River Delta - Freight