Express logistics extend in all directions, connecting thousands of cities and industries, communicating supply and demand, and serving as the "capillaries" of economic operation. In 2024, the volume of express delivery services in China will exceed 170 billion, demonstrating the strong resilience of the express delivery industry and containing the vibrant vitality of the Chinese economy. How to create a brand new record? Through three lenses in the eastern, central, and western regions, one can explore the truth. ZTO Express Zhejiang Yiwu Suxi Branch's intelligent technology is widely used in express delivery to embark on a "smart" journey. How busy is logistics in Yiwu, known as the "world supermarket"? Entering the peak collection period at 8 pm, on average, over 20000 packages flood into Zhongtong Express every minute. The size of the package determines the speed of delivery Zheng Chengbao, the General Manager of Zhongtong Zhejiang South Management Center, went out of the gate. Previously, packages were flowing, but now data is rushing ahead of packages. The consumer successfully placed an order, and the "smart" journey of a courier began - "Di! Collection successful..." In Suxi Town, Yiwu, the courier came to the door to scan and collect a set of New Year paintings, and a 14 digit order number was immediately generated in the Zhongtong Express big data center. Immediately afterwards, this package full of New Year's flavor was transported to the express delivery outlet. Here, it will merge into the "torrent" of packages, be weighed and delivered in different areas through the "six sided scanning" intelligent device, and then accurately fall into the intelligent packaging bag for quick delivery to Qingyuan, Guangdong. Each collection bag is equipped with a chip for full tracking of package transportation; Backed by big data algorithms, the backend ensures the optimal delivery route for packages... With the collaborative efforts of intelligent technology, over 14 million packages are sent from Yiwu to various places every day via hundreds of transportation routes on the Zhongtong Express network, and can be delivered to the vast majority of areas in just over 40 hours. Not just Zhongtong. In the past 10 years, Yiwu's annual express delivery scale has rapidly increased from over 300 million to over 10 billion, and its business volume has increased to nearly 9% nationwide, becoming the second largest express delivery hub city in China after Guangzhou. Behind the ever-changing business flow, there are not only workshop machines running at full capacity, but also express logistics running at high speed. Nowadays, 16 million level large-scale express distribution centers, 77 sets of fully automatic sorting equipment, and more than 500 business outlets are orderly distributed in Yiwu, continuously weaving a dense express network, which strongly supports the "World Supermarket" to buy and sell globally. It's not just Yiwu. Thanks to the widespread application of intelligent technology, the efficiency and quality of express delivery services have significantly improved. Cainiao launches a new L4 level public road unmanned vehicle to provide transportation capacity guarantee for peak express delivery periods; Yunda has opened unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) delivery routes for pre warehouse branches, expanding real-time delivery scenarios within the same city... Over the past year, the layout of unmanned equipment facilities has accelerated, with nearly a thousand unmanned vehicles and over 300 UAVs used in the industry, and nearly 3 million parcels delivered by UAVs. With the support of intelligent technology, distribution centers, express outlets, and delivery routes spread across the country are woven into an efficient giant express network, helping to accelerate the implementation of "smooth flow of goods". In the past year, China received more than 100 pieces of express delivery per capita, generating more than 5400 pieces of express delivery per second on average, and the maximum daily handling capacity of express delivery reached 729 million pieces, a new historical record. Hubei Ezhou Huahu International Airport's international delivery has made significant progress in promoting express delivery overseas. On the morning of January 7th, amidst a roar, a SF Airlines B757-200 all cargo plane loaded with goods took off from Ezhou Huahu International Airport. Among various goods, fresh flowers from Yunnan are particularly eye-catching. These flowers were freshly picked the day before and transferred to the cold chain in the afternoon of the same day. They were then transported by cargo plane from Kunming to Ezhou that evening, and then transferred to an international air route for "empty transfer". They will arrive at Incheon Airport in South Korea at 8:00 the next day. From picking and loading to cross-border delivery, after a relay race across mountains and seas, the flowers still remain fresh and lively. A fresh food express delivery journey reflects a significant leap in the express delivery's ability to go global. As the first professional cargo hub airport in China, Ezhou Huahu International Airport is experiencing a scene every day: after midnight, an average of one plane from all over the world arrives at Huahu every two minutes. One after another, all cargo planes took off and landed, sending away "Made in China" new energy products, electronic information products, and bringing back fresh goods such as South American salmon and North American Boston lobster. After more than two years of operation, a set of data shows changes: as of the end of 2024, the number of international/regional cargo routes at Ezhou Huahu International Airport has increased to 30, with a cumulative cargo and mail throughput exceeding 1.28 million tons. Every morning, hundreds of thousands of packages are unloaded, sorted, loaded, and shipped here, achieving "overnight nationwide delivery and global delivery the next day" through 85 domestic and international freight routes. From a regional perspective, in the past year, China's international express delivery has made strong progress, and express delivery has reached a new level of going global - the construction of hub centers is faster. Looking at the domestic market, Jiaxing in Zhejiang Province, the construction of Yuantong Dongfang Tiandi Port is in full swing. After being fully completed and put into use this year, it will become the first professional international freight hub in the Yangtze River Delta; Looking at the international market, China has built a total of 297 overseas distribution centers and 333 overseas warehouses. The overseas ground network is better. JD Express's international service scope has expanded to nearly 80 countries and regions worldwide, with the farthest reach reaching Latin America and Africa; Cainiao's "Global 5-Day Delivery" international express products have expanded to 14 countries... In the past year, China has established self operated or franchised service networks in 71 countries and regions. By 2024, the volume of international and Hong Kong, Macao, and Taiwan express delivery services in China will increase by 25%, becoming a bright spot for the express delivery industry to move towards high-quality development The relevant person in charge of the State Post Bureau stated that this year they will continue to strengthen the construction of the international postal logistics system, encourage postal enterprises to participate in the investment and construction of professional freight hubs, strengthen overseas warehouse construction, and support express delivery enterprises to go global together with cross-border e-commerce and manufacturing enterprises, providing integrated logistics solutions. At 3:36 pm on December 2, 2024, in Kashgar County, Xinjiang, a villager named Guliziman Shayimu received a free shipping package from Zhejiang Province. "From placing the order to signing for it, it only took 4 days!" What impressed her was the speed of the package. Xinjiang and Zhejiang are about 4000 kilometers apart, and after the express arrives in Urumqi, it still needs to cross hundreds or thousands of kilometers to reach remote villages. Express delivery companies cooperate with e-commerce platforms to establish transit warehouses in Xi'an, Shaanxi and other places, improve terminal infrastructure, significantly reduce delivery costs, and improve delivery efficiency, making "Xinjiang free shipping" possible. What is even more astonishing is the volume of express delivery. The package received by Guliziman is the 300 millionth package to be delivered to Xinjiang by Jitu Express in 2024. In May, the number of parcels exceeded 100 million, and in September, it exceeded 200 million. In the past three months, a new leap has been made again... Amidst the accelerating increase in business volume, a more complete and mature inbound and outbound express delivery network has been outlined. Nowadays, the Jitu Express delivery network has covered 9750 administrative villages in Xinjiang, and has basically achieved "express delivery to villages" throughout the region. The postal express delivery service for Xinjiang's characteristic products has generated a business volume of over 59 million pieces, a year-on-year increase of over 180%, driving agricultural output value of nearly 4 billion yuan. In the accelerating increase in business volume, two new changes worth paying attention to in China's express delivery industry are also reflected - looking at the regional structure, the growth momentum in the central and western regions is strong, and the effectiveness of coordinated development of industry service regions is more obvious. Shentong Express's new transfer center in Hohhot, Inner Mongolia has been officially put into use, improving express delivery efficiency by 20%; Cainiao has established self operated distribution centers in Changji, Xinjiang and other areas to provide consumers with next day delivery services for online shopping... Over the past year, by actively solving the problem of "no free shipping" in Xinjiang, Inner Mongolia and other regions, the accessibility of postal networks in central and western China has continued to improve, and the balance of postal services has been continuously enhanced. In 2024, the volume of express delivery services in the central and western regions will increase by 30% and 35% year-on-year, becoming a new engine supporting the growth of express delivery scale. Looking at the urban-rural structure, the deepening of "express delivery into villages" has effectively stimulated the market potential of rural areas. YTO Express has built over 38000 self owned stations in rural areas, covering nearly 20000 towns and villages; Yunda Express has newly opened more than 400 township branches and increased its promotion of express delivery to villages through self built rural supermarkets and other means... In the past year, the integration of rural passenger, freight and mail development has deepened and become more solid, with a total of 5248 postal and intermodal transportation routes and 34000 cooperative stations opened. Today's China has basically established a nationwide, deep rural, and globally accessible express delivery service network, carrying large-scale, high-frequency, and wide-ranging physical circulation, and will continue to support the sustained high-speed development of the express delivery industry. In the future, with the continuous release of market demand and a more sound logistics network, Chinese express delivery will continue to reach new heights. (New Society)