The Xinjiang Uygur autonomous region ranked first in China last year in the growth of express delivery volume and related business revenue, according to the State Post Bureau, Xinjiang Daily reported recently.

The express delivery volume in the region last year reached 305 million items, up 88.1 percent year-on-year, and related business revenue hit 6.2 billion yuan ($863 million), up 78 percent.

Karamay, a city in the north of Xinjiang, recorded express delivery revenue of more than 100 million yuan for the first time last year. Its total, 111 million yuan, represented a year-on-year growth of 61.4 percent.

"In 2023, the city leveraged the basic support role of the postal and transportation networks in rural areas to comprehensively consolidate and improve the quality and efficiency of express delivery to villages, which achieved simultaneous improvements in the coverage rate of postal and express cooperation and the volume of delegated deliveries," said Chen Libo, director of the industry management department at Karamay's postal administration. "We also strove to accelerate the innovative development of product services, such as connecting with the cultural tourism and business sectors to explore characteristic industries."

Nine other prefecture-level cities in Xinjiang — Urumqi, Hami, Changji Hui autonomous prefecture, Bayingolin Mongol autonomous prefecture, Aksu, Kashgar, Hotan, Ili Kazak autonomous prefecture and Tacheng — achieved annual express delivery revenues exceeding 100 million yuan.

The regional capital, Urumqi, is home to 18 provincial-level distribution centers, and 10 major domestic express delivery companies have established regional headquarters in the city through the construction of new warehouses or leasing of storage centers.

Express delivery revenue in Urumqi hit a record 3.44 billion yuan last year.

Sales of various specialty products from Xinjiang, such as fresh fruit, beef, mutton and cheese, brought tremendous development opportunities to the express delivery and logistics industry in the region.

Xinjiang's e-commerce retail sales increased by 23.7 percent last year, offering effective support to rural vitalization efforts.

"To help transport agricultural and animal products out of Xinjiang, SF Express utilizes 56 domestic distribution warehouses and three fixed flights within Xinjiang to provide services," said Li Shouguo, director of the public affairs department at Xinjiang SF Express. "Starting from Urumqi, SF Express can deliver to 167 cities within 48 hours."

Urumqi, as the center of the express delivery industry in Xinjiang, is exploring the development of the Internet plus delivery service economy and vigorously developing local warehouses to promote innovative delivery service models.

The Xinjiang warehouse of Tmall Supermarket achieved next-day delivery last year through integrated warehousing and distribution services, significantly reducing long-distance delivery times.

ZTO Express launched a Xinjiang seafood cold chain project last year, providing an integrated cold chain transportation solution for Xinjiang-produced seafood.

Leveraging over 1,400 nationwide trunk lines and opening direct routes, it has improved transport efficiency, helping Xinjiang's seafood sell well nationwide.

Xinjiang SF Express said its international express delivery service has reached 84 countries and regions around the world and customers' cross-border e-commerce parcels can be delivered to over 220 countries and regions worldwide.