Cainiao Network and Saudia Cargo has announced a partnership to form a China to Europe air bridge that will link Asia, Europe and the Middle East to meet the growing e-commerce demand.

The partnership will see the carrier operate five weekly flights from Hong Kong to Liege in Belgium, with Riyadh city as a connection point.

According to Cainiao, the Middle East is one of its top five overseas markets, with shipment volume growing 20 percent year-on-year. With the launch of new flights, Alibaba’s logistics arm says customers will be able to receive online orders, such as electronics, apparel, and household products from China, in as fast as 10 days.

Also read: Keeping up with eCommerce: Key focus areas for air cargo

“The partnership with Saudia Cargo is key to expanding our global logistics network to improve export efficiency,” said William Xiong, Cainiao’s chief strategist and general manager of export logistics.

“This new route will be one of the key elements to creating a seamless logistics network and increasing synergies between different regions,” he added.

Saudia Cargo, with its fleet of four B777 and three B747-400 freighters, says it has adequate capacity to haul e-commerce shipments on different routes and the move is a confident step towards turning Saudi Arabia into a modern global logistic hub.

“This partnership will pave the way for open channels of global trade, which in turn, forms a massive contribution to the Saudi Vision 2030,” said Saudia Cargo’s CEO Omar Hariri.

“Other promising partnerships will be coming up in the near future to reinforce logistic operations of Alibaba in both continents,” added Hariri.