Nippon Express to cut stake in Japan Post JV

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Nippon Express Co said it will reduce its 34 percent equity stake in its parcel delivery service joint venture with Japan Post Service Co to 14 percent and remove it as an equity-method affiliate.

The trucking firm said it will sell 20 percent of its shareholding in JP Express Co to Japan Post Service, the mail arm of government-owned Japan Post Holdings Co, Japan Today reported, citing industry sources.

The move comes after Japan Post Service said last month it would delay the planned Oct 1 integration of its parcel delivery operations with Nippon Express as the integration has not obtained approval from the communications minister.

FedEx will continue China growth FedEx Express (FedEx) recently announced an enhancement to its inbound international express service in China. Building on the earlier service enhancements in the Pearl River Delta region, Shanghai deliveries from around the world will now be delivered by noon, six hours earlier than the previous commitment of 18:00, the company said in a statement.

“With research projecting that GDP growth in China is expected to expand at about nine per cent in 2010, China will continue to be a key export market for businesses seeking to tap its longterm growth potential,” said David L. Cunningham Jr., president, Asia Pacific, FedEx Express.

The new noon delivery commitment for Shanghai adds to later cut-off times and earlier delivery services offered in the Pearl River Delta region since March and May 2009 respectively. These enhancements are made possible by the opening of the new FedEx Asia-Pacific Hub at Guangzhou Baiyun International airport, which opened in February 2009.

Cunningham also said the company’s express parcel delivery business in China will continue to grow, and the company will expand its presence in western China. The business that the company launched in China in 2007 is growing well, and its key selling point is a high level of reliability, he said. But Cunningham acknowledged that competition with local rivals is intense and the company will keep pricing attractive as Chinese consumers are very conscious of prices, he said.

The company will focus on developing its parcel delivery business model in China and will continue to expand its business in the country’s western regions, which represents 50 per cent of the population of China.