Time-sensitive air express cargo goods proved more resilient in the recent downturn than general air cargo, says Andreas Hermann, Airbus' vice-president freighters.

"(Air) express cargo experienced only a year of negative growth since 2008, while general (air) cargo suffered four years of negative growth since 2008," he said.

It is understood that air express cargo deals with time-sensitive products like pharmaceuticals, life-saving equipment and other essential spare parts that need to be sourced quickly, failing which those who are sourcing those products will face huge losses. On the other hand, general cargo that needs to be transported as airfreight may not be as urgent as air express cargo and can be sometimes even transported by ocean-going vessels.

"The Chinese domestic (air) express market is booming," says David Prevor, head of market research and forecast at Airbus. "Chinese domestic (air) express cargo will thrive like the US integrator (Federal Express and UPS) markets of the 1980s and 1990s."

As such, a booming Chinese air express cargo market will create the demand for small and mid-size freighter aircraft, he said, adding that the Chinese domestic air express cargo market will grow at 11 percent year-on-year.

According to Ma Junsheng, head of the China State Post Bureau, the market value of China's express delivery industry will reach 400 billion yuan ($65.3 billion) by 2020.

The revenue will represent an eight-fold increase on 2010, Ma said, the fastest growing segment of the postal services.

In the next decade, overall revenue for postal services are set to account for 0.6 percent of the country's gross domestic product, four times that of 2010.

The bureau vows to improve efficiency and quality, said Ma, adding that State-backed China Post is likely to rank among the top 100 in the Fortune 500 list.

(HK Edition 10/25/2013 page6)