Each emerging market is different. The consumption habits of people in Southeast Asian countries are deeply influenced by Chinese culture. Almost all consumption upgrade products in various countries will be popular in the overall market of Southeast Asia, which has led to a rapid growth in the volume of cross-border parcels in Southeast Asia. ASEAN is developing into the world’s second factory. The transfer of domestic manufacturing, ASEAN ATIGA and CPTPP free trade agreements are also beneficial to the logistics market in Southeast Asia. Various dedicated lines and parcel delivery are the main forces in the cross-border logistics market in Southeast Asia. Nearly one million e-commerce parcels are transported by air from China every day. The time limit is usually within two weeks, the transportation time is short, and the cost is cost-effective. In addition to regular cargo flights, they can also be delivered to Thailand and Vietnam and other countries through cross-border land transportation of ASEAN full trucks and full containers. The delivery time in countries with many islands is very poor. Sometimes the logistics cost even exceeds the value of the goods themselves, and there are many cases of cash on delivery.
Products imported into the Philippines must pay import tariffs, consumption taxes, value-added taxes and various customs charges. The Philippines has no exemption for imported goods. Tariffs may be levied on all parcels, and there is uncertainty in taxation. Most of the delivery in the Philippines is limited to the vicinity of Manila. Commercial express delivery such as 2GO can provide national delivery.
The Indonesian customs has always been known for its strict customs clearance. The complicated customs clearance procedures and high tariffs are also a major constraint on the development of cross-border logistics. Logistics companies and customs clearance agents must have very strong legal capabilities. From the end of each year to March of the following year, it is the “red light period” for Indonesian import customs clearance. The Indonesian customs will work with other law enforcement agencies to conduct strict inspections on import customs clearance, which will increase customs clearance procedures and frequent inspections. If the merchant declares improperly, more fees will be incurred.
Malaysia’s logistics policy environment is more favorable to cross-border e-commerce. In order to completely transform the logistics industry, the Malaysian government proposed a master plan to promote logistics and trade in 2015.
Singapore belongs to urban distribution, is relatively wealthy and westernized, and its good infrastructure makes the country the first stop for the expansion of ASEAN cross-border logistics. Self-pickup boxes (POPStation) are more popular. Similar ones include Indonesia’s POPBox and Thailand’s Box24.
Postal services in Southeast Asian countries such as Singapore Post, Malaysia Post POS Laju, and Vietnam Post VN Post have ushered in unprecedented development opportunities, but the overall delivery timeliness and quality need to be improved. Local express delivery companies in Southeast Asia are also rising rapidly. City-link, ABX, GDEX, SkyNet, Airpak, NinjaVan and other delivery companies in Malaysia are upgrading their e-commerce services. Dragonlink in Singapore, NIM in Thailand, KOSPA in Myanmar, JNE and J&T in Indonesia are developing rapidly. Kerry and DHL have a large market in Southeast Asia. Kerry Logistics has developed rapidly through a series of mergers and reorganizations in recent years. It ranks first in Thailand’s e-commerce warehouse distribution and has grown dozens of times in the past five years. 500 DCs handle more than 500,000 packages a day. In recent years, express delivery companies such as Japan’s Kuromaru, China’s SF Express and Best have made efforts to expand the Southeast Asian market, initially established a regional express delivery network, established multiple branches, and realized bilateral mail delivery. JD.com has built its own logistics Jaya Ekspres in Indonesia, and most orders in the Jakarta area can be delivered on the same day.