The new center allows international retailers to reach domestic consumers in "one of the world’s most mature and fastest-growing e-commerce markets," said Damien Sheehan, managing director for Australia at DHL eCommerce.
“Australian shoppers are the second-most likely in the world to buy online from overseas merchants,” Sheehan said, noting that the country’s purchasing power would only increase as cross-border e-commerce grows at an average of 29 percent per year.
In 2014, Australia exported $243bn of goods, including $60bn worth of iron ore on a natural-resource intensive bill of export. Meanwhile, the country imported $219bn, resulting in a positive trade balance of $24.8bn, including $55bn worth of technology and IT-related equipment.
The Australian center joins a list of eight DHL fulfillment facilities in countries such as the United States, India and Germany. The Sydney facility will offer DHL’s fulfillment products, which allow retailers to provide business-to-consumer shipping from the warehouse “that integrates inbound freight, inventory, and last-mile delivery in a single consolidated service,” the company says.
