DHL eCommerce, a division of the world’s leading logistics company, Deutsche Post DHL Group, announced on Friday plans to further increase its presence in South China through the introduction of its e-commerce logistics services in Fujian province.

The company plans to expand capabilities in Fujian to offer simple and affordable cross-border shipping solutions to connect Chinese merchants to over 220 countries and territories across the world.

China‘s booming retail e-commerce market, estimated to reach $839.5 billion by 2021, growing from $376.2 billion in 2016, according to Statista.com. The growth momentum in southern China is particularly strong - cross-border e-commerce transactions in Fujian grew a robust 42 percent to a total value of $28.3 billion, which accounted for 18.5 percent of exports in the province in 2015, according to ebdeep.com.

To enable merchants in southern China to tap into this huge cross-border e-commerce opportunity and compete in the international market, DHL eCommerce will now provide greater convenience with pick-up services; easy IT integration of their inventory into the shipping process, as well as greater variety of simple and affordable cross-border shipping solutions to reach out to customers across the world.

For high volume, low value e-commerce products, merchants can rely on DHL GM Packet and DHL GM Packet Plus as affordable options with 4 to 10-day transit times. In addition, with the US, the UK, Australia, and Israel as popular e-commerce markets for China, DHL eCommerce also offers DHL Parcel International Direct delivery services to these particular destinations with professional clearance services backed by DHL’s excellent track record with 5 to 7-day transit times.

For easy integration from order management to the shipment process, merchants will be able to tap on DHL eCommerce’s Customer Web Portal for IT integration from marketplaces such as Amazon, eBay, AliExpress, and Wish.com, or their preferred portal platform with easy API integration with the help of DHL eCommerce, for a seamless offline to online logistics coordination.

“With exports expected to make up 75 percent of China’s e-commerce turnover three years from now, a strong and reliable logistics framework has to be set in place to meet growing needs,” said Zhi Zheng, managing director for the China market at DHL eCommerce. “Manufacturing and export hubs like Fujian will be the center stage of all future growth of e-commerce exports in China. DHL’s expertise in international shipping and fulfillment, along with our global network and strong e-commerce expertise, will play a fundamental role in connecting China’s e-tailers with online markets across the world.”

DHL eCommerce, known for its expertise in international cross-border shipping, fulfillment, and customs clearance, is well positioned to support cross-border Business-to-Consumer (B2C), Business-to-Business-to-Consumer (B2B2C) trade, as well as Manufacturer-to-Consumer (M2C) trade, which would be a boon to Fujian’s traditional industries – clothing, shoes, and textiles.

“We are expanding our presence in South China (southern China) to better service merchants here, and provide them with the opportunity to tap on the massive cross-border opportunity. This underpins our growth strategy for South China (southern China) where we will focus on growing our outbound e-commerce trade and continue to expand our offerings across Tier 2 and 3 cities,” Zheng said.

“Developments like the creation of the Fujian Free Trade Zone as well local initiatives such as the Xiamen Customs' ‘Internet plus Self Declaration reform’ herald very exciting times for Fujian. This inclusiveness will undoubtedly result in an upward trend for cross-border e-commerce growth. Our increased focus in South China (southern China), along with expansion plans for the Shenzhen Distribution Center this year are exciting steps that we are undertaking to further accelerate the immense growth potential and capability of the southern China cross-border e-commerce region,” said Boris Cheng, Managing Director, South China and Hong Kong, DHL eCommerce.

“These efforts, in addition to the continued integration of DHL’s network into the Belt and Road initiative, are paramount to connecting China’s retailers and businesses to a global integrated network. We’re literally bringing the world to their doorstep.” DHL eCommerce is part of Deutsche Post DHL Group, established in 2014 as part of the group’s growing focus in e-commerce logistics solutions. Along with its sister divisions DHL Express, DHL Supply Chain, and DHL Global Forwarding in China, the group offers end-to-end solutions for e-commerce retailers. This includes cross-border shipping with a premium offering from DHL Express and affordable solutions from DHL eCommerce, fulfillment solutions through DHL eCommerce and DHL Supply Chain, and omni-directional freight solutions from DHL Global Forwarding.