DHL buys Turkish firm to tap into e-commerce sector

DHL

• DHL has bought Turkey’s MNG Kargo for an undisclosed sum
• It will acquire 27 sorting centres and more than 800 branches
• DHL CEO called e-commerce ‘one of the biggest growth drivers’

DHL Group has bought Turkish parcel delivery company MNG Kargo, as the German logistics giant looks to tap into Turkey’s fast-growing ecommerce industry.

“E-commerce remains one of the biggest growth drivers for logistics services and especially for parcel volumes,” CEO Tobias Meyer said. “We, therefore, continuously work to expand our footprint.”

DHL will buy MNG Kargo’s 27 mid-mile sorting centres and more than 800 last-mile branches across Turkey.

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DHL Express launched a new hub at Istanbul Airport in 2021, while DHL Global Forwarding this year announced it would boost its partnership with Turkish Cargo. 

Financial details of the deal were not disclosed.

Turkey has recorded a dramatic rise in its ecommerce sector on the back of strong growth during the pandemic and a low base level.

The e-commerce sector in Turkey is estimated to be worth around $11.7 billion in 2023, according to data compiled by ResearchandMarkets.com, and is forecast to grow by 7.55 percent per annum until 2027.

The market is dominated by global player Amazon and local operator Trendyol, which was established in 2010 in Istanbul.

UAE sovereign wealth fund ADQ, Qatar Investment Authority and SoftBank Vision Fund 2 were part of a $1.5 billion funding round in 2021, just months after Alibaba invested $350 million in the company.

Online shopping in Turkey grew by 88 percent in 2021 and 68 percent in 2022, according to a report by NielsenIQ.