New index points to expansion in China's express delivery sector

BEIJING - A newly-published index showed Tuesday China's express delivery sector expanded fast in November, reflecting improved business activity in the economy.

The China express delivery index rose to 112.1 percent last month from 107.5 percent in October, according to the China Federation of Logistics and Purchasing (CFLP), which released the index for the first time.

The index was compiled based on data from large-sized logistics firms operating delivery services and could provide a perspective on business activity in the economy, said He Hui, deputy head of the China Logistics Information Center under the CFLP.

The new index has shown strong momentum in express delivery services since the beginning of this year, the CFLP said.

The sub-index for delivery activity in the manufacturing industry has stood at a relatively high level so far this year, while those for the property and construction industries have dropped consecutively.

The rapid growth of express delivery services has created more jobs, with the number of employees in the sector up 130 percent from January 2014, according to the CFLP.

China has the world's largest express delivery sector, accounting for more than 40 percent of the world's total delivery volume.

In the first 10 months of 2017, 31.1 billion deliveries were made, up 29.1 percent year-on-year and near the annual total of last year, the CFLP said.