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| Charles Kaufman, CEO of DHL Global Forwarding in the Asia Pacific, speaks during a press conference at the Plaza Hotel in downtown Seoul, Thursday. DHL offers freight services to Korean companies looking to ship their products to Europe via railway. / Courtesy of DHL Global Forwarding |
By Lee Hyo-sik
DHL, one of the world's largest logistics providers, has begun offering freight services to Korean manufacturers looking to ship their goods via a combination of sea and railway transport.
In particular, domestic companies making automobiles, apparel, electronics and beverages can benefit from DHL's comprehensive Asia-Europe multimodal network, which makes it faster and cheaper to send products to Europe, the company said.
In a press conference Thursday, Charles Kaufmann, CEO of DHL Global Forwarding in the Asia Pacific, said the company will provide Korean businesses with more flexible and efficient access to the nation's third-largest export market. DHL Global Forwarding is DLH's freight service unit.
"First, shipments will be loaded onto our ferry services linking ports in Incheon and Busan to a range of major Chinese ports including Shanghai, Taicang and Lianyungang," Kaufmann said. "They will then travel via truck to major inland hubs in cities including Chengdu, Hefei, Suzhou and Xian for subsequent transport to Europe on DHL's rail services."
The CEO also said Korean firms will gain access to DHL's Flexigateway service, which selects the optimal rail route for shipments based on available capacity and route speed at any given time, giving them clearly-defined transit times at the most efficient operating cost.
"With Korea's exports to Europe growing at a robust pace over the past few years, exporters have a greater need for flexible and scalable freight services than ever before," Kaufmann said. "Given this, the nation should continue to invest in forging strong trade ties with Europe and secure the necessary transport infrastructure that sustains them. Our new offerings, such as Flexigateway, seek to streamline and stabilize the logistics process for Korean businesses of all sizes."
He said DHL's Asia-Europe multimodal services include specialized systems for automobiles, apparel, electronics and beverage industries.
"The Korean economy continues to rely heavily on value-added exports to grow, and reinforcing its existing trade partnerships will help it continue to weather global uncertainty," said Song Seok-pyo, managing director of DHL Global Forwarding Korea.
"This new connection to our Asia-Europe multimodal network will not only improve the fundamentals of freight flexibility, cost and reliability for Korean businesses," Song said. "It will also directly address the unique needs of the nation's most crucial and well-regarded industries, giving them the confidence to pursue expansion overseas."
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