With the spread of the COVID-19 pandemic worldwide, the demand for personal commodities overseas, especially medical supplies has surged. Facing the intense situation of large scale flight reduction by many airlines, China Cosco Shipping and China Post have jointly opened up an international mail shipping service through sea routes to ensure the normal delivery of international mails.

On April 10, Cosco Shipping container vessels laden with China Post international mail items set off from Shanghai to Japan and New Zealand respectively, marking the brand-new mode of international postal mail transportation. On April 19, postal items of three 40-foot high-cube containers are departed from Shanghai to the Middle East, further increasing the scale of international mail shipping by sea routes and effectively guaranteeing the smooth flow of international postal routes and the transportation channels for anti-epidemic medical supplies.

International mail transportation is highly demanding in terms of time limit and security, and the relatively scattered addresses and the huge variety of personal mail items, in particular, require personalized transportation services, all of which make a test for the organizing and coordinating capabilities of the sea-route transport service.

China Cosco Shipping has set up a task force to arrange and coordinate the work of the international mail shipping service with China Post.

Upon receiving the space booking request for shipping from Shanghai to Yokohama, Japan, and Auckland, New Zealand on the morning of April 3, the task force has formulated the transportation plan accordingly with great care and arranged the operation team to launch a green operation channel immediately for China Post. The rapid service response at the earliest time has guaranteed the smooth operation procedures such as space booking, advanced manifest submission, and pick-up.

Even though the request fell among the Qingming Festival, the customized operation plan laid out by China Cosco Shipping Lines was connected in real time with the information updates from the side of China Post, such as empty container pick-up, packing, laden container being on dock, and customs clearance. Those information updates helped solve a series of problems encountered in the process, and assured the shipping service unaffected regardless of the holiday.

At present, the first batch of mails from Shanghai to Japan has successfully arrived at Yokohama port on April 15. According to the shipping schedule, the first batch of mails from Shanghai to New Zealand will arrive in Auckland on May 2, and the first batch of mails from Shanghai to the Middle East will arrive in Haifa on May 24.

The successful pilot operation at the Shanghai Port has laid the foundation for the following international mail shipping service by sea routes. More mails bound for New Zealand and the Middle East have finished booking at Shanghai Port, and those to Brazil are scheduled to be shipped in late April. Shanghai has set a good example of similar international shipping services for other ports such as Guangzhou and Tianjin.

With the continuous launch of sea routes from China to Japan, South Korea, the Middle East, Europe, America, Africa and South America, China Cosco Shipping has further built a more diversified and efficient green channel for overseas shipping services for anti-epidemic supplies. The operation of international mail shipping service via sea routes has demonstrated that China Cosco Shipping is capable of providing the customers with the high-quality, end-to-end shipping services through its innovative and customer-oriented approach, relying on the network advantages of global routes, end-to-end transportation, and information system. Meanwhile, it also highlights that the two State-owned enterprises, China Cosco Shipping and China Post, have been giving full play to the synergy effect, actively fulfilling their social responsibilities, and working together to provide greater support for global epidemic prevention and control.