New norms under Covid-19 crisis strengthens Malaysian postal & courier sector
KUALA LUMPUR: Malaysia’s postal and courier sector – represented by Pos Malaysia Bhd, GDEX Bhd and Nationwide Express Holdings Bhd – posted a total revenue of RM2.79 billion last year.
This was 3.7 per cent higher than the RM2.69 billion recorded in 2019.
The growth was underpinned by strong demand for courier services following a surge in online shopping, according to Malaysian Communications and Multimedia Commision.
“The new norm accelerated digitalisation and proliferation of online shopping in the aftermath of the Covid-19 contributed positively for the parcel delivery segment,” MCMC said in its Industry Performance Report 2020 released today.
MCMC, however, said the industry was facing new challenges of an overly crowded playing field with 119 courier services licensees in 2020.
“Cut-throat competition resulting in razor-thin margins for the courier business calls for a regulatory reform in this industry. MCMC has taken a proactive approach by setting a moratorium period of two years for any issuance of new courier service licences effective from September 14 2020 to September 15 2022.”
The implementation of the moratorium, MCMC said, aimed to provide an opportunity for the government, together with the postal and courier licencees to formulate new plans for the sector that faces various challenges from technological changes and market trends.
Meanwhile, MCMC said Malaysia’s e-commerce market had grown from strength to strength, driven by a relatively high internet penetration rate.
According to GlobalData, e-commerce in Malaysia recorded a total of RM30.2 billion in 2020, up 24.8 per cent from RM24.2 billion in 2019.
The upward trend was expected to continue in 2021, with an estimated 20 per cent growth to a total value of RM36.1 billion.
Usage of e-payment services also grew significantly in 2020.
“According to Bank Negara Malaysia, although the pandemic and movement restrictions triggered a decline in economic activities, the total number of e-payment transactions continued to record a double-digit growth of 14 per cent to 5.5 billion transactions in 2020.
“On average, a person in Malaysia made 170 e-payment transactions in 2020, up from 150 transactions in 2019,” MCMC said.