CAINIAO Network, the logistics arm of Alibaba Group, has announced that it would ramp up investment to double cross-border air-freight efficiency.

It’s Cainiao’s latest initiative to build its global logistics infrastructure since Alibaba Group increased its stake in Cainiao in 2019, with the goal of delivering packages throughout China within 24 hours and within 72 hours elsewhere in the world.

Cainiao plans to increase its chartered export flights from 260 to 1,260 over the next nine months, which means air-freight time should be halved to three to five days from the current seven to 10 days.

The logistics firm will also expand its overseas warehouse network from 30 warehouses spanning 1 million square meters to over 2 million square meters in the next three years. Chinese small and medium-sized enterprises will be able to pre-stock their goods in these overseas warehouses, allowing 90 percent of cross-border orders to be fulfilled within 72 hours in 100 cities.

“Logistics has become a game changer and key differentiator that sets one business apart from another,” said Cainiao president Wan Lin.  (Xinhua)