Chinese logistics firm BEST bets on Southeast Asia for growth despite disruptions from the coronavirus pandemic
- Although BEST’s net loss widened to US$106 million in the first quarter, the company’s international revenue was up 182.8 per cent
- Southeast Asia is often seen as the next big e-commerce market to crack after China
Chinese smart supply chain and logistics services provider BEST Inc. plans to expand its footprint in Southeast Asia with the launch of express delivery services in Malaysia, Cambodia and Singapore.
Backed by Chinese e-commerce giant Alibaba and electronics contract manufacturer Foxconn, New York-listed BEST plans to build 12 sorting centres and about 400 logistics stations in the three new markets over the next three years.
“The outbreak of Covid-19 accelerated and amplified consumers' reliance on e-commerce and created even larger potential opportunities in the region,” said Johnny Chou Shaoning, founder and chief executive of BEST. He added that Southeast Asia was a “key focus area” of the company’s global strategy.
Despite the company’s net loss widening to 750.8 million yuan (US$106 million) in the first quarter of 2020 from 233.4 million yuan a year earlier, the company’s international revenue was up 182.8 per cent primarily due to strong growth in parcel volumes in Thailand and Vietnam.
Founded in 2007 in China’s e-commerce hub Hangzhou, the capital city of Zhejiang province, BEST now operates in over 20 countries around the world, including the US, Germany and the UK. It entered Southeast Asia by starting operations in Thailand and Vietnam last year. In the first quarter of 2020, the company delivered a total of 8.84 million parcels in the region.