DHL To Invest $175 Mn On Cargo Hub

DHL Worldwide Express Inc. has decided to put in $175 million on a new North Asia cargo hub at Shanghai''s Pudong International Airport.Plans for the 55,000-square-meter hub were formally set out at a signing ceremony with the Shanghai Airport Authority, part of a plan launched by the city in 2003 to become China''s biggest cargo handler.

The airport at Pudong is due to begin operations at expanded facilities early next year, a major step toward nearly doubling its cargo handling capacity from 2.2 million tons last year to 4.2 million tons a year by 2010, city officials say.Hong Kong is now greater China''s biggest cargo hub, with throughput of 3.6 million tons in 2006. Shanghai ranks sixth in the world, up from 17th in 2003. The cargo hub raises DHL''s total investment in the Asia-Pacific region to $2.2 billion over the past few years.