10 February 2010

Expected to further facilitate trade between Malaysia, Singapore and Thailand

DHL is offering both bonded and non-bonded cross-border road freight services that include full or less than truck load service options to meet customers’ needs. Plying between Singapore, Malaysia and Thailand, this flexible, cost-efficient and door-to-door solution will further enhance DHL’s multi-modal transportation services.

Bonded freight refers to shipments that are moved under bond to a country’s customs, and to be delivered only under stated conditions. DHL manages and operates bonded and free trade zone (FTZ) warehouses and distribution centres, where payment of duty is usually deferred until the goods leave the facility.

DHL’s cross-border road freight services include direct pick-up and delivery and other value-added services such as additional insurance, customs clearance and handling of import, export and transit documentation to meet customers’ needs.

With its extensive network and fleet of vehicles in the region, the scheduled cross-border road freight service could help businesses reduce freight cost by up to 25.0%, compared to air freight, and benefit from the shorter transit time of at least one day relative to sea freight on a port-to-port basis. This service ensures that shipments weighing from less than 100 kg to over 2,000 kg are pre-planned and delivered in a timely manner, which is crucial for customers in the automotive, consumer, high-tech and oil & gas sectors.

In the past year, DHL has seen an increasing demand for road freight service in addition to air and sea freight services. The volume of goods transported overland between the three countries is poised to grow between 2009 and 2014, with the movement of goods in the automotive, electronics and consumer goods industries expected to register an annual compounded growth rate of 8.0% each.

This service is expected to further facilitate trade between Malaysia, Singapore and Thailand, long regarded as leading trade partners. Total bilateral trade between Malaysia and Thailand increased from US$15.0 billion in 2006 to US$19.6 billion in 2008. Malaysia is also Singapore's top trading partner with bilateral trade reaching S$111.4 billion in 2008, an increase of 1.4% from the previous year.

Traditionally, shipments are transported into Bangkok for domestic distribution in Thailand. However, after recognising growing demand in Southern Thailand, DHL designed its service to enable goods transported into Thailand to be cleared at the border in Sadao before onward distribution within the area.
DHL’s cross-border road freight service will operate out of the Company’s hubs located in Bangkok, Kuala Lumpur, Penang, Sadao and Singapore. The bonded and non-bonded cross-border road freight service offers pick-up and delivery services across Thailand and Malaysia based on post code zones, with coverage of all major cities and industrial areas as well as connections to remote areas. More significantly, the service has the potential to turn this part of South East Asia into a more integrated market.