Shanghai streets are nearly deserted on April 19, 2022, as the megacity remains under strict epidemic control management except for the partial resumption in production of certain industries. Photo: VCG

The delivery sector in Shanghai has been accelerating work resumption with more outlets restarting services and more couriers getting back to work as the industry moves to unclog logistics bottlenecks caused by the local COVID-19 outbreak.

Major express companies in Shanghai have reopened their sorting centers to guarantee the delivery of epidemic prevention materials, emergency medicines and basic living materials of the people, the Shanghai Municipal Postal Administration said on its official WeChat account on Sunday.

A total of 21 express companies have been added to a whitelist of crucial businesses allowed to resume work and production, up from seven at the end of last month. 

As the dynamic zero-COVID approach is progressing, more distribution centers and business outlets will be opened in accordance with epidemic prevention measures, and a full resumption of the delivery business will be achieved when the social and economic order is gradually restored, according to the Shanghai Municipal Postal Administration.

ZTO Express said that more than 1,000 frontline staffers in Shanghai have returned to work and more than 200 transport vehicles in its transport center in Qingpu district are operating on a daily basis.

"With the resumption of work and production, we expect the volume of express deliveries to gradually resume," ZTO said in a statement sent to the Global Times on Sunday.

All couriers are asked to adopt stringent epidemic-prevention measures, including having two antigen tests on the first day and a nucleic acid test and an antigen test the following day, ZTO said, adding that all deliveries are now contactless.

Meanwhile, foreign express giants, including FedEx, are making adjustments to ensure stable services.

FedEx has opened a "green channel" for many of its customers in East China, making every effort to reduce the impact of the epidemic on their import and export businesses and ensure the smooth delivery of goods to their production lines, the company said in a statement sent to the Global Times on Sunday.

Although packages can be delivered to Shanghai residents, the volume is still small compared with the usual number of packages, an industry source told the Global Times on Sunday.

"At the current stage, the priority is to meet the demand for delivering necessary supplies and emergency medicine, while the delivery of online shopping orders is still limited," the person said.

Although only a small number of outlets have resumed work, the scale of the resumption of work and production continues to expand.

Global Times