The Global Express & Small Parcels 2022 report provides a detailed, up-to-date view of the trends influencing the express logistics market
The Express and Small Parcels 2023 Report shows a picture of normalising activity, as the market shrunk by 0.6% y-o-y in 2022 to a value of €523,080.6m in real terms.
Parcel volumes expected to increase to 189bn in 2023
A tentative recovery in demand is to be expected in 2023 following the rapid softening of parcel volumes in 2022. As such, the global express market is expected to grow by 3.6% y-o-y to a value of €542,108m, with global parcel volumes growing by 4.7% y-o-y to 189,120m. Recovery is expected in both the international and domestic markets.
The Express and Small Parcels 2023 Report is written by industry researchers, analysts, and utilising data from the publisher's GSCi knowledge portal, a data powerhouse with over 1 million pieces of data and analysis.
Nia Hudson, Research Analyst at the publisher says: “The express and parcels market has passed through an extraordinary three years since the beginning of the Covid-19 pandemic. Companies are now in a situation where they have had to implement significant price increases to counter falling volumes, resulting in another unusual market situation where volumes are falling but operators are able to continue increasing revenue. Looking forward, we expect to see a slight recovery in real growth into 2023, although year-on-year growth is expected to be the lowest in almost a decade according to Ti’s data. We should however be careful to paint this figure in too much of a negative light - it may be better to characterise as a normalisation following a period of intense growth.”
Report highlights:
- The overall global express market shrunk by 0.6% y-o-y in 2022, to a value of €523,080.6m as volumes continued to soften from the pandemic induced B2C peak and the economic bounce back of 2021.
- Growth was led by Asia Pacific and the MENA region in 2022, the only two regions to exhibit positive growth rates (3.1% and 1.2%, respectively). All other regions saw negative growth throughout 2022.
- The global express market is expected to show a tentative recovery in demand in 2023, growing by 3.6% y-o-y to a value of €542,108m, following a rapid softening of parcel volumes in 2022.
- The global express market is expected to grow by a CAGR of 5% over the next five years, reaching a value of €666,428m.
- The State of Logistics Express and Small Parcels Survey 2023 reveals that 69% of respondents are currently experiencing increased pressure on margins. Top three key investment focus areas over the next 12 months include route optimisation technology, tracking and visibility technology and alternative delivery network/infrastructure.
- The integrators continue to dominate the global parcel market. UPS is the market leader in terms of revenues, with €80bn of parcels-related revenue.
- Revenue growth rates have largely been maintained through price increases, as volumes have (mostly) declined in 2022. For example USPS revenues were up 10% with volume down 5.2%.
Table of Contents
- Introduction
- Table of Contents
- Table of Figures
Executive Summary
Global Express & Small Parcels 2023 provides detailed analysis of the global express and parcels market, including market size and forecast data, market segmentation, volume and revenue data and forecasts, e-commerce growth, sustainability trends, survey results, competitive analysis & company profiles.
The Global Express & Small Parcels market remains highly competitive but challenging economic conditions continue to impact falling volumes and rising revenues.
This market report provides the insight and data you need to understand market dynamics and opportunities. For the first time the report contains parcel volume data and forecasts.
This report contains:
- Market size and forecast data for 2022, 2023 and out to 2027, split by region, country, domestic, international and B2B/B2C.
- NEW volume and revenue data and forecasts for 2022, 2023 and out to 2027.
- Market segmentation - domestic vs international and B2B v B2C.
- e-commerce market trend analysis including PUDO locations, alternative vehicles, retail sales and express route optimisation technology.
- Sustainability trend analysis.
- 2023 State of Express and Parcels Survey analysis.
- Competitive landscape analysis - revenues, parcel volumes and parcel yield.
- Express provider profiles and comparative reviews.
Key Findings
- The global express market shrunk 0.6% in 2022.
- In 2023 the market is expected to show a tentative recovery in demand, growing by 3.6% y-o-y.
- Out to 2027, the market is expected to grow at a 5% CAGR.
- The international market is expected to grow by 5.2% in 2023, slightly quicker than the domestic market.
- Following a slight decline in 2022, B2C is expected to continue to dominate the global express and small parcels market.
- The majority of survey respondents fleet is only 0-10% alternative/electric, suggesting sustainability progress is incredibly slow.
- Although 41.2% of respondents believe pressures will intensify over the next 12 months, 38.2% believe pressures will ease, and margins will likely be positively impacted.
- Improving route optimization will improve delivery efficiency, speed up parcel delivery, reduce fuel and time wastage, and improve customer satisfaction.
Key Questions
- How fast will the global market grow between 2023 and 2027? And how fast will regional markets grow?
- How fast will the B2B/B2C markets grow over the next 5 years? Will B2C continue to dominate the market?
- What will be the three most successful strategies adopted by the express and parcel carriers to sustain profit margins?
- What will be the key investment focus areas in the next 12 months?
- What strategies are leading market players such as DHL and UPS adopting in order to improve route optimisation?
- What are the advantages and disadvantages of autonomous delivery and electric vehicle last mile delivery?
- Who were the Top 10 leading global parcel carriers by revenue in 2020-2022?
- Who were the Top 10 leading global parcel carriers by revenue growth rates and volume in 2020-2022?
- How do the sustainability targets of the top express logistics providers compare? What progress have they made?
Companies Mentioned (Partial List)
A selection of companies mentioned in this report includes, but is not limited to:
- DHL
- UPS
- FedEx
- Royal Mail (and GLS)
- La Poste (and DPD)
- Yamato
- Sagawa
- SF Express
- Yunda Express
- YTO Express
- ZTO Express
- STO Express
- USPS
