State Post Bureau: China's express delivery development index for September stood at 463.9, up 0.9 percentage points year on year.

The State Post Bureau data shows that, after calculation, China's express delivery development index for September 2026 stood at 463.9, up 0.9 percentage points year on year. Among them, the development scale index was 607.9, up 3.2% year on year; the service quality index was 691.2, basically flat compared with the same period last year; the development capability index was 230.3, up 0.7 percentage points year on year; and the development trend index was 50.6. In September, the industry operated generally steadily, service quality and efficiency improved steadily, digital and intelligent transformation advanced in an orderly manner, and comprehensive transport capacity continued to strengthen. The industry strongly supported consumption expansion, effectively empowered the real economy, and played a role in smoothing the economic circulation. Figure 1 China Express Delivery Development Index from September 2024 to September 2026 In September, the development scale index was 607.9, up 3.2% year on year. From the sub-indicators, express delivery volume is expected to grow by about 2% year on year, and express delivery revenue is expected to grow by about 5% year on year. In the first three quarters, the industry actively promoted production-sales matching and helped industrial transformation and upgrading. Express delivery volume exceeded 151 billion pieces, expected to grow by about 4% year on year; express delivery revenue exceeded RMB 1.1 trillion, expected to grow by about 7% year on year. With the arrival of holidays such as the Mid-Autumn Festival, express delivery companies continued to strengthen service guarantees, orderly expanded diversified delivery scenarios such as campuses, scenic spots, and cultural and sports events, optimized service supply such as direct delivery from production areas, and promoted efficient cross-regional circulation of goods. Express delivery companies accelerated the construction of fresh cold-chain facilities in the northwest region, promoted the vigorous development of the express delivery market in the central and western regions, and steadily enhanced the balance and coordination of industry development. In September, the service quality index was 691.2, basically flat compared with the same period last year. From the sub-indicators, public satisfaction with express delivery services is expected to be 85.3 points, up 0.3 points year on year. The 72-hour delivery rate in key areas is expected to be 86.8%, up 0.4 percentage points year on year. In the first three quarters, the industry steadily advanced digital and intelligent transformation. First, digital and intelligent technologies accelerated empowerment. Express delivery companies adhered to innovation-driven development and promoted the application of intelligent equipment. For unmanned vehicles, they upgraded the device-cloud collaborative "fast and slow dual systems" and adopted a "light map" end-to-end solution, effectively shortening safety response time under complex road conditions. They developed low-temperature cold-chain Siasun Robot&Automation, and through the coordinated transformation of low-temperature-resistant hardware and temperature-humidity monitoring, increased picking and outbound efficiency at minus 20 degrees by 2 times. For couriers, they developed an AI delivery assistant, which through functions such as batch outbound calls and exception push, assists in completing delivery demand communication and handling of abnormal express items, reducing pressure on operations. Second, integration with manufacturing continued to deepen. Express delivery companies focused on the needs of shoe and apparel manufacturers for B+C unified inventory, omnichannel fulfillment, warehouse-delivery coordination, and nationwide return management, improved digital and intelligent supply chain solutions integrating automated equipment, RFID full-chain traceability, and AI intelligent decision-making, and helped enhance the flexibility and adaptability of supply chains. Third, rural service supply continued to optimize. Express delivery companies deeply served the county economy, densified urban and rural delivery networks, continued to strengthen the construction of rural delivery logistics systems, and steadily improved the convenience of rural delivery services. Around seasonal nodes such as the fishing season and harvest season, they deployed unmanned equipment on a large scale, added production-area service stations, applied professional fresh-keeping packaging, and comprehensively upgraded characteristic Shenzhen Agricultural Power Group production-area delivery services; integrated resources such as direct all-cargo aircraft routes, land transport trunk lines, professional cold chain, and high-speed rail express, built a multimodal transport service system, and shortened the overall delivery time. In September, the development capability index was 230.3, up 0.7 percentage points year on year. The industry continued to advance infrastructure construction, continuously expanded the trunk transport network, and steadily enhanced operational efficiency. Express delivery companies established a Wenling cold-chain direct distribution center, improved cold-chain infrastructure, and enhanced fresh product delivery service capabilities. The industry's own airline opened a new "Jiaxing-Luxembourg" all-cargo aircraft route, expanded air network coverage between China and Europe, and strongly supported the high-quality development of cross-border trade. In September, the development trend index was 50.6. In October, the industry will gradually enter the peak business season, and the operating trend will continue to improve. This article is edited and selected from the State Post Bureau. GMTEight editor: Li Fo.