Japan Post may buy Daimaru-affiliated delivery firm

Japan Post is in final talks to buy Asocia Corp., a delivery company affiliated with department store operator Daimaru Inc., in a bid to strengthen its services in areas where it competes with private-sector firms, the Asahi Shimbun reported Wednesday.

The national daily said the move would be Japan Post’s first acquisition of a company and that the public corporation is considering acquiring or forming a capital tie-up with more than one delivery company.

Japan Post was created in 2003 by taking over postal and related financial services from the government. It is allowed to invest in private businesses operating in areas closely related to its services.

But this expansion move by Japan Post, which is already as large as its major private-sector competitors, could spark criticism that its status as a public firm would give it an unfair advantage, the daily said.

Osaka-based Asocia is mainly involved in packaging and delivering merchandise for department stores, and providing direct mailings for corporate customers in the Kinki region centering on Osaka. It has a network of more than 100 distribution centers with about 800 employees.