Cainiao Network, the logistics arm of Alibaba Group, and Saudia Cargo have forged a partnership to create a 'sky bridge' between Asia and Europe to serve the growing global e-commerce market.

In a statement, Cainiao said it joined Saudia Cargo's flight program in March 2021, linking Hong Kong SAR to Liege Belgium, via Saudia Cargo's Riyadh hub, with 12 flights operated per week. 

The freighter flight enables Riyadh to become the model of an effective distribution hub in the Middle East thanks to the strong partnerships that the company has forged with local players.

Cainiao noted that the success of last year's cooperation agreement has enabled Saudia Cargo to achieve significant growth in e-commerce shipments this year.

"The agreement has allowed us to benefit from access to Alibaba's e-commerce platform as online shopping continues to soar, boosted in part by the Covid-19 pandemic. The partnership with Cainiao, which offers logistic services to more than 200 countries," said Vikram Vohra, Saudia Cargo's regional director – Asia Pacific.

Dandy Zhang, commercial director of Global Line Haul, Cainiao's cross-border business said Cainiao has been "consistently enhancing" its logistics services and efficiency to satisfy the booming demand for e-commerce in Europe and the Middle East.

"Our partnership with Saudia Cargo has been fruitful, and we look forward to strengthening our cooperation in the long term," Zhang said.

Saudia Cargo has increased the number of cargo flights it operates to destinations in the Middle East, Africa, Asia, Europe, and North America over the past few years to ensure that it continues to meet the rising demand for e-commerce and deliver on Saudi Arabia's 'Vision 2030' strategy for growth.

The company has increased its haulage capacity from last year, adding and only improving its space and tonnage capacity to haul e-commerce goods on different routes, that are cared for by highly trained personnel who ensure the safest delivery. The number of flights from the Hong Kong market grew by over 30% alone.

Saudia noted that the pandemic revealed the urgent need for cargo services as the e-commerce sector saw a dramatic rise during the pandemic, with a forecast increase of 19% worldwide in e-commerce revenue between pre-and-post COVID-19 timeframes in 2020.

Saudia Cargo announced several measures to ensure the continuity of its operations and their increase in flights was part of its services with Cainiao.