• Customers who place an order from the US on AliExpress can now expect to receive their parcel in five days, delivered by Cainiao.
  • Alibaba’s latest efforts come amid the rise of a new breed of online retailers with Chinese roots, led by Shein and PDD Holdings’ Temu.

Alibaba Group Holding has expanded its “five-day delivery” service to the US, as the Chinese e-commerce giant faces intensified competition against Temu and Shein in the world’s largest economy.

Five-day delivery

Customers who place an order in the US on AliExpress, Alibaba’s international e-commerce platform, can now expect to receive their parcel in five days, delivered by Cainiao, according to the Alibaba logistics unit on Tuesday.

Cainiao, a global leader in e-commerce logistics, and AliExpress jointly launched their five-day global e-commerce delivery services last year. Coverage has since been expanded to cover Germany, France, Portugal, Saudi Arabia, and Mexico, in addition to the US.

“We hope to make ‘Global Five-Day Delivery’ a global express shipping service for cross-border merchants, ” Ding Hongwei, vice president at Cainiao, said in a statement.

Ding believes that expedited delivery services have become a crucial factor for cross-border e-commerce operators striving to boost orders on their platforms, as consumers prioritise fast delivery when deciding where to shop online.

Also read: TikTok, Temu, Shein: Will China’s Amazon killers succeed?

Competitions with Shein and Temu

Alibaba’s latest efforts come amid the rapid rise of a new breed of online retailers with Chinese roots, led by Shein and PDD Holdings’ Temu, which have made a splash in the US and other international markets on their competitive pricing tactics.

According to Alibaba’s financial report, the company’s Choice service, which was launched last year to provide fast delivery of high-quality goods, saw orders grow by more than 60% year-on-year in the December quarter last year.

Cainiao’s revenue grew 24% year on year in the same period, bolstered primarily by its cross-border logistics and fulfilment services.

Alibaba said in its latest quarterly report that order volume associated with its five-day delivery service achieved triple-digit growth between the September and December quarters.

Besides, Cainiao will continue to execute its strategy of building a global smart logistics network by improving freight transport, customs clearance, parcel sorting, and delivery.