Kerry Logistics has completed its acquisition of a majority stake in San Francisco-based Apex Maritime and affiliated companies.

“The acquisition of APEX is a major leap forward in our global expansion plan,” said William Ma, group managing director of Kerry Logistics. “The Asia-US trade plays an important role in our IFF growth strategy and Apex will form an important business arm that further strengthens our global network, enabling us to tap into new opportunities from trans-Pacific trades. It will also bring mutual benefits to both companies, with enriched service offerings and extensive marketing network in the US to Kerry Logistics’ customers as well as strong pan-Asia logistics support to APEX’s customers.”

According to Kerry, its customers now have a dedicated sales team to handle their business in the US market, while Apex’s customers also have access to improved service offerings and logistics support in Asia.

Apex has more than 20 years of experience and specializes in trans-Pacific trade, having handled over 270,000 TEUs in 2015. It is one of the top three NVOCCs in terms of Asian imports into the US.

“The Apex team is excited to join the Kerry Logistics family,” said Vic Cheung, CEO and president of Apex. “We are ready to take full advantage in realizing vast cross-selling opportunities from the integration. Our customers will gain global scale and best practices in supply chain management, while maintaining their relationship with the same team that has served them for years. We are enthusiastic to grow with Kerry Logistics from now on.”