UPS touts new Asia strategy

United Parcel Service Inc., fresh off a global rebranding effort, is unveiling a new approach to logistics in Asia.

Dubbed “synchronized commerce,” the strategy treats three core aspects of the supply chain – movement of goods, information on the goods, and funding for those – as a single entity, said Ken Torok, president of UPS Asia Pacific.

Saying “[s]ynchronized commerce is the next step in the evolution of trade,” Torok said the move is particularly relevant to Asia, where more than 90 percent of the economy comprises small- and medium-sized enterprises.

“The ability to move their goods…and to gain quick access to funds tied to these goods, can sometimes be a life-or-death situation for these companies,” Torok said. “Synchronized commerce will help Asian businesses become the masters of their fate.”

UPS is focusing special attention on Hong Kong, its gateway to China for foreign shipments and as China’s gateway to the world.

UPS began direct air service between Hong Kong and its Asian hub in the Philippines in late February, after receiving an interim grant of authority from the U.S. Department of Transportation.

— P.T. Bangsberg