DHL

Peak season used to feel like a mad dash, but DHL says the holidays don’t bring the same sense of chaos they once did. Thanks to years of planning, better forecasting, and rapid growth in robotics, the company is heading into the busiest stretch of the year with confidence instead of panic.

A new DHL Supply Chain report shows 91% upgraded tech in the past five years, yet 49% still cite outdated systems as a top concern.

A new report recently issued by DHL eCommerce, a subsidiary of global logistics services provider, Deutsche Post DHL Group, examined how both business-to-business (B2B) and business-to-consumer (B2C) e-commerce shippers are getting ready for peak season, in terms of their key objectives and priorities.

As part of the plan, DHL will move its Manhattan service center to a new 92,505-square-foot site in Jersey City, New Jersey, by the end of November 2025. The new building is about five miles from Lower Manhattan and is designed to make deliveries smoother, safer, and more efficient.

DHL Global Forwarding, a subsidiary of global logistics and express delivery provider Deutsche Post DHL focused on air and ocean freight, announced it has rolled out a new consolidated clearance service, which it said is geared towards U.S. imports to support retailers as they deal with trade shifts and tariff complexity.

The latest DHL Global Connectedness Tracker shows trade expanding faster in early 2025 than in any half-year since 2010.

DHL Supply Chain is expanding its healthcare reach with the acquisition of SDS Rx, a company that handles last-mile deliveries for long-term care and specialty pharmacies, radiopharmacies, and health system networks.

Third-party logistics (3PL) providers are grappling with geopolitical instability, fluctuating tariffs, rising costs, and labor shortages, while also facing pressure to accelerate e-commerce order fulfillment. Smaller 3PLs struggle to keep pace with larger peers due to high costs of automation, AI, and robotics. Despite these challenges, the U.S. 3PL market saw growth in 2024, with net revenues increasing by 1.6%.

The new four-year contract includes raises, better pensions, mental health benefits, and protections around AI and automation.

The company explained that this investment comprises its major divisions—DHL Express, DHL Global Forwarding, DHL Supply Chain, and DHL eCommerce, in various ways, including enhancing infrastructure, expanding networks and capacity, and elevating service capabilities.

DHL Supply Chain described this deal as a strategic move to further enhance its e-commerce capabilities, as well as extend its services to small and midsized customers. IDS Fulfillment brings more than 1.3 million square-feet of multi-customer warehouse and distribution space throughout the U.S.

The company is focusing on cold storage, temperature-controlled delivery, and faster service worldwide.

A global survey of over 5,000 small and midsized businesses find few are willing to dedicate significant resources to building sustainable delivery options.

The partnership will help DHL reach its sustainability goals, including electrifying delivery vehicles and cutting greenhouse gas emissions.

In what could be viewed as a largely down freight market in recent years, driven by various factors, including inflation, uneven demand, and sluggish manufacturing, among other factors, a more stable part of the freight market appears to be an increase in logistics-focused mergers and acquisitions (M&A) activity.