Alibaba to bring down logistics costs for manufacturers

Jack Ma, founder and chairman of Chinese e-commerce giant Alibaba, said that the company's logistics service Cainiao had been working on a smart national logistics network that aimed to reduce logistics costs and aid the development of the manufacturing industry, reports thepaper.cn. 

File photo taken on Nov. 13, 2014 shows couriers sorting parcels at an express facility in Weifang, east China's Shandong Province. [File Photo: Xinhua]

China's current logistics costs account for 15% of the GDP, compared to the 7%-8% in developed countries. Ma said at the Global Smart Logistics Summit in Hangzhou, Zhejiang Province that they would try to bring down the costs to within 5% of China's GDP. 

Ma said lower costs could bring huge profits to the manufacturing industry and that could be achieved with the help of big data. 

Cainiao is aiming to make deliveries within 24 hours in China and 72 hours worldwide. 

Cainiao's ultimate purpose is to connect the world's logistics services and build a new global network with its own characteristics.