FedEx urges Tokyo to strip Japan Post of operating advantages
FedEx Corp, the US express delivery group, has asked the Japanese government to remove Japan Post’s operating advantages ahead of April when it is scheduled to enter the international distribution market, the Financial Times reported.
In its online edition, the newspaper cited David Cunningham, president of FedEx Asia, as saying all players should compete on an equal and transparent basis.
Japan’s international distribution market has been dominated by the ‘big four’ — FedEx, United Parcel Service (UPS), DHL and TNT — with an estimated 70-80 pct market share.
‘Japan Post currently enjoys many regulatory advantages that inhibit fair competition,’ Cunningham was cited as saying.
Japan Post does not have to pay the fees associated with declaring packages’ contents to customs which private companies must pay, he said.
Cunningham said that Japan Post is regulated by a different agency to the private companies and that should change since it is now offering the same services.
But the newspaper cited Minoru Hasegawa, manager of the business development division at Japan Post, as saying that regulatory advantages would be eliminated once it launched its operations next April.
