FedEx Express has announced a new route between Asia and Europe which will provide improved connectivity and service reliability for customers across North Asia, including China and Japan.
In a statement, the logistics company noted that customers in Singapore will also benefit from additional inbound capacity from Europe.
Increased connectivity between Asia-Europe
"The new flight route connects China's capital Beijing to the FedEx Charles de Gaulle (CDG) Hub in Paris, France for the first time with ten connections per week via Osaka, Japan," FedEx said.
"This new route will benefit businesses as the cut-off time for same-day outbound shipments from Beijing to Europe will be extended, offering more time for customers to arrange their shipments," it added.
FedEx noted that in addition, Japanese businesses shipping time-sensitive packages or items requiring rigorous temperature control and monitoring such as those in the healthcare sector, as well as heavy-weight packages, will benefit from the direct connection between Kansai International Airport, FedEx North Pacific Regional Hub and the CDG Hub in Paris, France.
This new route will also provide one day a week direct connection between FedEx Charles de Gaulle (CDG) Hub to Singapore.
FedEx said Singapore is the EU's second-largest commercial partner in the ASEAN region, and the direct connection will offer Singapore customers an enhanced weekly inbound capacity of almost 50 tonnes (50,000 kilograms).
"As one of the most important trade lanes in the world, Asia-Europe is where mega-economies will converge in the coming years. Addressing capacity demand is critical, along with service enhancements like extending cut-off times to better support today's on-demand economy," said Kawal Preet, president of the Asia Pacific, Middle East, and Africa (AMEA) region at FedEx Express.
"This latest flight route is another example of our continuing efforts to enhance our operational strength and meet customer needs along a growing trade corridor. This will help importers and exporters on both sides build more nimble supply chains and give them better access to new markets," Preet added.
Trade between Asia and Europe countries accounts for about half of the world's merchandise commerce due to the strong trading momentum led by China, the world's second-largest economy.
FedEx said 2021 saw trade between China and Europe grow to US$800 billion, and the trajectory continues with a 12% year-on-year increase over January and February 2022 to US$138 billion, further strengthening China's position as the EU's biggest trading partner in the world.
Supporting e-commerce
It added that trade between other Asian markets like Japan, Singapore, and the EU also continues to show a healthy momentum.
"The launch of this new flight route is an extension of the ongoing efforts to expand FedEx air network and enable customers to harness the full potential of cross-border commerce," FedEx added.
It noted that last year, FedEx introduced six new intercontinental flights originating from the Asia Pacific (APAC), contributing additional capacity of almost 2,700 tonnes (2,690,000 kgs) and a total of over 220 weekly flights in and out of APAC to the U.S. and Europe.
