DHL launches North Asian multimodal service linking Japan to Europe

DHL Global Forwarding has announced the launch of a multimodal service linking Japan to its existing rail solution from China to Europe. Using a combination of trucking, sea and rail solutions, the seamless, scheduled service offers customers in Japan access to DGF China’s rail freight solution which reduces the delivery time by up to half to between 10 and 21 days compared to solely using ocean freight and reduces costs by up to 85% compared to airfreight. In addition, customers seeking environmentally friendly solutions can also expect a fall of CO2 emissions of up to 90% compared to airfreight. 

Kelvin Leung, CEO, DHL Global Forwarding Asia Pacific, said, “We have established a North Asian multimodal network which connects the North Asian power houses – China and Japan – directly to any destination in Europe. Intra-Asia trade constitutes some 25% of Asia’s total exports due to the inter-connectedness of the supply chains in the region¹ and Europe-Asia trade still constitute some of the region’s major trade flows. Our new service linking Japan to our existing China rail network presents a truly innovative solution which offers cost and time benefits to customers across the region.” 

Moving Shipments Faster and Cheaper: Truck – Sea – Rail ride from Japan to Europe 
Businesses in Japan with goods to be transported to Europe can be picked up from anywhere across Japan by truck. Using 40-foot containers, cargo is then transported to any of four ports across Japan – Tokyo, Nagoya, Osaka and Hakata. Upon arrival at the ports, cargo is transported by sea across the East China Sea to Shanghai. This enables goods from just about anywhere in Japan to reach any part of China via DHL’s multimodal sea-rail service. From Europe, the multimodal service is also available via China rail and sea to Japan for the import shipment. 
Connecting Japan to DHL’s established China Rail solution to Europe 
Within China, DHL Global Forwarding currently operates two routes: The first along the trans-Siberian North Corridor – the service taps the bustling production and commercial centers of Shanghai, Suzhou and its surrounding areas. The second, the trans-Kazakh West Corridor rail service originates from Chengdu – one of the most important distribution centers in Western China and a hub for high tech goods, automotive and other industries. 

A true door-to-door service, DHL’s multimodal solutions connect China to Europe by picking up goods from any location in China, taking it by rail through to Poland and offering last mile delivery by truck or rail to anywhere in Europe. 

Only in September, DHL Global Forwarding announced the expansion of the multimodal service by adding Suzhou to the departing points and is now linking Japan via China to Europe. In both Japan and China, the service is available for full-container services, known as DHL Railline, which enables customers to block out single containers, wagon groups or whole block trains. 

“Since our introduction of the first multimodal service in 2011, DHL Global Forwarding has been a pioneer in introducing new routes for multimodal services to Japan – to offer customers even greater flexibility and choice for their logistics needs. We are seeing a big potential of this innovative service for our customers in all sectors moving goods between Japan and Europe, especially in the electronics, automobile and the fashion and apparel industries,” said Mark Slade, President and Representative Director for DHL Global Forwarding Japan.