DHL to spend millions on India market
DHL Worldwide Express plans to invest $58 million over the next two-and-a-half years to beef up infrastructure in India.
Chris Callen, country manager for the company’s Indian unit, said the investment would be made in new express terminals at airports in Mumbai and Chennai, service centers and trucks. A new express gateway at Delhi airport is ready and will be operational shortly, he said.
DHL, a unit of Deutsche Post World Net, says India represents one of the company’s four key markets, along with China, Japan and Australia.
The Deutsche Post group operates in India through two joint ventures. DHL Worldwide Express India Pvt. Ltd. is in a joint venture with AFL Ltd., while Danzas has linked up with the Mumbai-based Lemuir group.
Callen, speaking at a logistics conference in Chennai, said DHL will begin operating a flight into India early next year. The service will operate between Hong Kong and Brussels, with a stopover at New Delhi.
DHL has just launched a new service called Fast Forward for export and import of shipments weighing 20 kilos or more. The service will provide savings with a range of door-to-door services, and is aimed at the automobile, electronics, heavy engineering, publishing and textile industries.
Sales of the Indian unit have been growing at 30 percent annually, with documents constituting 30 percent of total cargo, Callen said.
DHL has been expanding its services in neighboring countries. In April, it began offering quicker Customs clearance for Sri Lankan imports. In December, DHL signed up with Pakistan Post to offer co-branded parcel booking.
