Tokyo-based Nippon Express Company, also known as Nittsu, has opened its second subsidiary by establishing Nittsu Logistics Myanmar Company in Thilawa Special Economic Zone. Nippon Express is the largest Japan’s largest international freight forwarder and one of the pioneers of the Thilawa Special Economic Zone (SEZ), which was a joint venture project between government of Myanmar and Japan to foster trade between the two nations. So far, 47 companies have set up branches in the Thilwa SEZ from 13 countries; 24 of them are Japan-based.
This is not the first investment Nippon Express has made in Myanmar. Nippon Express’s expansion into Myanmar started in 2012 when it opened a liaison office. A Myanmar branch of Nippon express (South Asia & Oceania) was registered in October 2012. It also created its first subsidiary, Nippon Express (Myanmar) in December 2014. These offices have worked to ascertain market conditions and locally-based logistics demand in preparation for full-scale expansion into the country.
Nittsu Logistics Myanmar will provide integrated logistics services, such as ocean and airfreight forwarding, customs clearance, domestic transportation, warehousing, cross-border services with neighboring countries, domestic trunk line transport, equipment transport in support of factory expansion by Japanese companies, and overseas removals to assist in transfers of Japanese personnel to local offices. The company will develop products and provide services to meet the needs of its various customers. Current plans are to build a new 56,800-square-foot logistics warehouse on the site by 2017.
Nippon Express has established a cross-border network extending approximately 7300km between Myanmar and neighboring Thailand in preparation for the new common market in ASEAN that has 610 million population and almost $2.3 trillion of GDP. ASEAN Economic Community (AEC) will be formally launched in early 2016.
