Dachser grew its Asia-Pacific revenue by 25% year-on-year to €426 million (US$528 million) in 2017, according to annual results released by the German logistics provider.

According to Dachser Asia Pacific, this was the first time that it had surpassed €400 million in annual revenue. During the year, Dachser Asia Pacific handled 118,200 tonnes of air freight, a year-on-year increase of 21.4%, and 222,500 TEUs, 12.5% more than in 2016. The number of shipments was also up 8.6% at 388,000.

“Our focus on large, multinational customers led to excellent growth rates which overtook market growth not only in terms of turnover but also in terms of volumes,” said Edoardo Podestá, managing director of air and sea logistics at Dachser Asia Pacific.

Dachser’s network in Asia Pacific comprises 49 locations. The team in the region grew by 8.4% to a total of 1,672 employees.

“We are committed to creating job opportunities and career paths for the next generation in Asia,” said Podestá. “Initiatives like our Asia Pacific Management Trainee Program are an outcome out of this strategy.”

Overall, the Dachser group generated €6.1 billion (US$7.6 billion) in gross revenue for 2017, having handled 81.7 million shipments, 2.1% more than 2016.

“Rising rates for air and sea freight in particular helped us achieve a significant increase in revenue,” said Bernhard Simon, CEO of Dachser SE. “We systematically pursued our successful export strategy for European overland transport and gained an additional tail wind from invigorated global trade.”

The air and sea logistics business unit grew its total air freight tonnage by 23.3% and handled 8.5% more TEUs. The number of shipments increased by 6.7% compared to 2016.

“Air and sea freight is a volatile business with revenue as ever swinging between extremes,” said Simon. “We are, however, focused on ensuring sustainably profitable growth. So we are increasingly dovetailing our two business fields and are pushing forward with system integration.”

Investment in network locations, fleets, technology and IT systems increased by 5% to €136 million (US$168 million) in 2017, with an additional €188 million (US$233 million) earmarked for investment focusing on industrial goods in 2018, according to Dachser.