1. 2023 Hurun China 500 List Released

On August 14, the Hurun Research Institute released the "2023 Hurun China 500." In the China 500 rankings, Alibaba’s value increased by 70 billion RMB, maintaining third place with a value of 1.57 trillion RMB. Pinduoduo entered the top ten for the first time, with its value surging by 468 billion RMB, reaching 1.1 trillion RMB, ranking fifth. The rise in value is mainly due to the growth of its overseas business, TEMU. SHEIN’s value increased by 170 billion RMB, entering the top 20 and ranking 15th.

Among the top 100 companies, six are from the e-commerce and logistics sectors: Alibaba (3rd), Pinduoduo (5th), SHEIN (15th), JD.com (21st), SF Express (36th), and ZTO Express (58th).  

Source: Hurun Report

2. USPS Announces Q3 2024 Financial Results

On August 14, USPS announced its financial results for the third quarter of fiscal year 2024. According to Generally Accepted Accounting Principles (GAAP), the net loss for this quarter totaled $2.5 billion, compared to a net loss of $1.7 billion in the same period last year. The controllable loss for the quarter was $1.1 billion, compared to $860 million in the same period last year.

The Q3 2024 report shows that USPS's total operating revenue was $18.8 billion, up 1% year-over-year. Revenue from transportation and parcels increased by 2.4% year-over-year, reaching $182 million, processing 46 million items.  

Source: USPS

3. A Well-Known Company Announces Sale of Its E-commerce Division

On August 14, it was announced that Pitney Bowes (PB), a global shipping and postal services company that provides technology, logistics, and financial services to over 90% of Fortune 500 companies, has sold a controlling stake in its Global E-commerce division (GEC) to Hilco Commercial Industrial. This move is intended to orderly and swiftly wind down the global e-commerce business. After acquiring Pitney Bowes' GEC division, Hilco immediately filed for bankruptcy protection for two of GEC's departments and began liquidation, which is expected to be completed by the first quarter of next year.  

Source: YiHangYun

4. SHEIN’s Supply Chain Headquarters Project Receives Approval

On August 14, the Guangzhou Municipal Planning and Natural Resources Bureau, Zengcheng District Branch, issued all 25 construction planning permits for SHEIN's supply chain headquarters project located in Zhongxin Town, Zengcheng District, at the Guangzhou East Rail-Road Intermodal Hub. This milestone marks the progress from planning to construction.

Next, SHEIN plans to build and operate an intelligent warehousing and logistics distribution park in Zengcheng, Guangzhou, which will integrate storage, stocking, picking, distribution, shipping, and settlement. This supply chain center will provide core support for SHEIN's global sales. The first phase of the headquarters project will cover 738 acres, with a total building area of no less than 800,000 square meters, and a total investment of 3.69 billion RMB.  

Source: Guangzhou Daily

5. TEMU Attracts Over 70% of U.S. Consumers with Low Prices

On August 14, Probolsky Research conducted a study on American consumers shopping on Amazon and TEMU. The results showed that 76% of consumers believe TEMU's prices are cheaper than Amazon's, making it more attractive to budget-conscious shoppers. Regarding shipping speed, 81% of consumers said Amazon's delivery speed is faster.  

Source: Probolsky Research

6. Walmart’s First Mile Service Officially Opens to Chinese Sellers

On August 14, it was announced that Walmart has officially opened its Walmart Cross Border service to Chinese sellers. Walmart Cross Border provides first-mile services to sellers on Walmart.com. This service has several features: First, sellers must participate in Walmart Fulfillment Services (WFS), meaning Walmart handles the back-end fulfillment; Second, this is a full-container-load (FCL) service from CY to DR, with the port of departure currently limited to Yantian, Shanghai, and Ningbo. After the goods arrive at the port, Walmart arranges to pick up the containers and unload them at the warehouse; Third, the service is operated by Walmart’s wholly-owned subsidiary WMSC Logistics Services, LLC, which has FMC NVOCC qualifications and offers 20ft, 40ft, and 45ft services through NRA quotes.  

Source: Walmart Global E-commerce

7. Lazada Achieves Profitability for the First Time

On August 14, it was announced that Southeast Asian e-commerce platform Lazada recorded positive EBITDA (Earnings Before Interest, Taxes, Depreciation, and Amortization) in July this year, achieving profitability for the first time since its founding in 2012. Lazada CEO Dong Zheng stated in an internal speech that this profitability proves the effectiveness of Lazada's business strategy. Lazada will continue to increase investment in the Southeast Asian market under a sustainable operating model. Previously, Lazada Thailand had already achieved profitability in 2022, becoming the first country to do so.  

Source: Wall Street Journal

8. DHgate to Regulate Orders with Abnormal Shipping

On August 14, DHgate announced that it will launch a campaign to regulate orders involving abnormal shipping in order to enhance the overall quality of merchant services and improve the shopping experience for buyers. The platform plans to take control measures on orders involving historical abnormal shipping cases starting in early September 2024. This move targets merchants who exploit the platform's logistics system by marking orders as "shipped" immediately after filling in tracking information, thereby concealing the actual shipping status from buyers. Merchants are advised to promptly adjust and optimize their shipping management practices.  

Source: DHgate

9. Hapag-Lloyd Announces New Peak Season Surcharge

On August 14, German shipping company Hapag-Lloyd announced a new Peak Season Surcharge (PSS) for shipments from Far East Asia to Australia. The surcharge will take effect on August 22 for shipments departing from mainland China, Hong Kong, Macau, Japan, and South Korea to Melbourne, Sydney, Brisbane, Adelaide, and Fremantle. The PSS for the Taiwan-Australia route will take effect on September 6. The surcharge for all container types is set at $500 per TEU.  

Source: Hapag-Lloyd

10. Turkey to Tax Cross-Border Goods Over €30

On August 14, Turkey introduced new tax regulations on overseas e-commerce purchases, lowering the duty-free threshold and increasing tax rates on products to support domestic merchants and protect local small and medium-sized enterprises. Under the new rules, goods ordered from abroad with a value exceeding €30 will be subject to tax. The previous duty-free threshold was €150. Additionally, the tax rate on goods from EU countries will increase from 18% to 30%, while the tax rate on goods from non-EU countries will rise from 30% to 60%.

Furthermore, if the product falls under a category listed in the Special Consumption Tax Law, an additional fixed tax of 20% will be levied. The new regulations are set to be implemented in mid-August. Statistics show that in the first half of 2024, the number of cross-border e-commerce transactions in Turkey increased by 17%, with transaction value surging by 95% year-over-year.  

Source: Xinhua News

11. China Merchants Shipping Opens New Vehicle Export Route

On August 14, China Merchants Shipping's subsidiary, China Merchants RoRo, successfully launched a new vehicle export route. The company's RoRo ship, "Chang Da Long," carrying 870 Chinese-exported vehicles, departed from Dachan Bay Terminal in Shenzhen and is en route to the Jebel Ali Port in the UAE. This marks the maiden voyage of China Merchants RoRo's "Dachan Bay-Middle East" vehicle export route. This new route is another milestone following the opening of the vehicle export route from Xiaomo Port in Shenshan, further supporting the development of ports in the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area.  

Source: China Merchants Shipping

12. China's Express Delivery Volume Surpasses 100 Billion Parcels in 2024

On August 14, it was announced that China's express delivery volume for 2024 has surpassed 100 billion parcels, 71 days earlier than it reached the same milestone in 2023. This highlights the vibrancy and continuous improvement in the quality and efficiency of China’s express delivery market and reflects the vitality and resilience of China's economic development. The 100 billionth parcel of 2024 was a wall-breaking machine, shipped from Urumqi, Xinjiang, to Changji. It was delivered by Cainiao Express and arrived on August 14.  

Source: State Post Bureau of China

END

WeChat Official Account: Cross-Border E-commerce Logistics Baixiaosheng