DHL increases capacity for Hong Kong-Beijing service to meet growing trade volume
DHL has further enhanced its overnight service between Hong Kong and Beijing, by increasing its dedicated flight frequency to meet the growing demand for cargo capacity fuelled by the robust trade between Hong Kong and Mainland China.
Customers utilizing this ten-time weekly dedicated service will now enjoy more options for their Hong Kong-Beijing shipment delivery schedule with the newly-added weekend flights, representing a 25 percent uplift capacity. As part of the service enhancement, DHL will utilize a larger Boeing B727-200F aircraft operated by Air Hong Kong – a 60/40 joint venture between Cathay Pacific and DHL – and customers will benefit from an overall 58 percent increase in payload capacity as the new freighter has a capacity to hold 24 tons per sector.
Trade between Hong Kong and Mainland China has been registering double-digit growth in recent years, boosted by strong Chinese exports. According to figures from China’s Ministry of Commerce, two-way trade figures in 2006 rose an impressive 21.6 percent, reaching US$166.2 billion. The uptrend continues in the first half of 2007, as trade volume expanded by a further 23.5 percent compared to a year ago. Hong Kong was China’s fourth largest trading partner and third largest export market last year.
The upgraded Hong Kong-Beijing service will further strengthen DHL’s Asia Air Network. The network currently comprises more than 30 destinations in 16 countries and territories, served by over 20 aircraft in dedicated air operations. This allows major Asia Pacific cities and other business centers to be interconnected through DHL’s regional hubs and gateways, providing DHL’s customers with overnight services across the region.
