• €7.3 billion revenue in 2018 business year

• Worldwide parcel volume rises to 1.3 billion

• 16 % growth in B2C deliveries

• DPD Germany: revenue growth of 6 %

Aschaffenburg/Paris, 21 February 2019 – In 2018, too, the international DPDgroup continued its strong growth, increasing its revenue on the year before by 8 % to €7.3 billion. At constant scope and exchange rates the increase was 8.6 %. The volume of parcels shipped rose by 7 % to a new record of 1.3 billion. Volume growth was especially strong in the BtoC segment, with an increase of over 16 %. Cross-border flows also developed very positively with above-average sales growth of 13.6 %. In spite of a difficult market environment, DPD Germany achieved a 4.6 % increase in revenue thanks to selective volume growth and significant price increases.

The BtoB segment accounted for around 59 % of DPDgroup's Europe-wide parcel volumes. The BtoC segment developed particularly dynamically in 2018, increasing by 16 % and thus accounting for 41% of parcel volumes (2017: 39 %). The BtoC business is characterised by greater fluctuations in parcel volumes and strong volume peaks in the high season. For the first time, in 2018 the highest daily volume was reached not just before Christmas Eve but on Cyber Monday (26 November), with 9 million parcels delivered across Europe and more than 2 million parcels in Germany. In Germany, too, BtoB remains DPD's largest business segment, accounting for around two thirds of parcels.

DPDgroup's international growth was most recently based on 42,000 Pickup points in an integrated European network, Europe's leading road-based cross-border network with its own organisations in 23 countries and Predict, an accurate one-hour delivery forecast for end-consignees in all markets. DPDgroup has thoroughly prepared itself for possible obstacles in cross-border shipping to and from the UK in the event of a no-deal Brexit scenario. This includes detailed arrangements for customs clearance and the establishment of reliable gateways for international linehauls.

DPDgroup growth has been sustained by an ongoing acquisition strategy, with the following achievements in 2018:

• Acquisition of Groupe ALP Delifresh, Freshlog and 360° Services by Chronopost France to accelerate the company’s growth in the fresh food and health markets

• A minority stake in Ninja Van, a rapidly growing parcel delivery service provider in South-East Asia

• Two new SEUR franchisees in Spain, increasing DPDgroup’s stake in SEUR to 94%.

DPD Germany: 4.6 % revenue growth achieved by significant price rises in response to a challenging market environment and rapid cost increases. Greater investment in the last mile, electromobility, digitalisation and infrastructure to meet the challenges of the future.

"In the past financial year DPD Germany had to face massive cost increases which could not, however, be fully offset by significant price increases. The market environment became much tougher, characterised by wage cost increases, increased working and traffic regulations and an acute shortage of labour."

Boris Winkelmann, Chief Executive Officer at DPD Deutschland

"In the past financial year DPD Germany had to face massive cost increases which could not, however, be fully offset by significant price increases. The market environment became much tougher, characterised by wage cost increases, increased working and traffic regulations and an acute shortage of labour," explains DPD CEO Boris Winkelmann. "It is precisely these structural challenges that we will tackle in 2019, while at the same time making the best possible use of the strong growth momentum in the logistics sector. Our operating principle for 2019 remains unchanged: we will continue to refrain from unprofitable growth and focus our development on high-margin segments such as premium BtoC shipping and cross-border BtoB and BtoC deliveries. We successfully achieved double-digit growth rates in both segments in the past business year. We will also make targeted investments, covering the expansion of our infrastructure, electromobility and city logistics, new product solutions and services as well as in cooperations, for example in the digital sector or on the last mile. We believe that we are well positioned to grow our business and at the same time take a lead in mastering the changes in our industry."

In response to the acute shortage of delivery personnel across the industry, DPD for the first time recruited its own drivers in 2018. In the medium term, the number of delivery staff employed by the company is to rise to 1,000. There are also plans to set up a driver academy in order to train delivery personnel even better in their tasks.

At the same time DPD significantly expanded the use of e-mobility last year - with cargo bikes in more and more German cities and the increased use of fully electric vehicles. By the summer of 2019 delivery operations in Hamburg's city centre, for example, will be completely emission-free. "E-vehicles and cargo bikes represent a sensible and sustainable option for inner-city deliveries, which is why we will increasingly be using them in 2019," states Boris Winkelmann.

During the past business year DPD expanded its digital innovation leadership on the German parcel market. For example, the company was the only parcel service to transfer the convenient services offered by its award-winning app - live tracking, the announcement of a one-hour delivery timeslot and a range of redirection options - to all virtual assistant systems such as Alexa, Google Home and Siri.

DPD Germany also continued to expand its transport infrastructure with further investment.  This is crucial for the basic supply of reliable delivery services, particularly in city centres: DPD invested around 75 million euros in new distribution centres in Kiel and Hamm alone, and both locations will commence operation this year. A parcel centre is also under construction near Augsburg, at a cost of 45 million euros.