Courier firms lose festive shine as austerity bites hard
Print Edition
THE central government’s austerity campaign is taking the bite out of the Mid-Autumn Festival.
Local courier companies are reporting a 25 percent drop this year in the delivery of mooncakes, the indispensable delicacy of the festival, which falls on Monday this year.
Shanghai-based Yunda and STO Express firms said the number of mooncake coupons and gift cards for delivery had also dropped dramatically.
What used to be one of the busiest business periods for courier companies is turning out to be a gloomy one, lamented one Yunda official who gave his surname as Guo.
“Companies, who were our major customers, have been delivering far fewer mooncakes than in previous years. Just a few dozen mooncakes are delivered every day, mostly by individuals,” he said.
The crackdown on ostentatious spending by public officials since 2012 means the numbers kept dropping in the last two years. Firms had already reported a substantial 30 percent fall last year.
Guo said many local courier companies were planning to raise the delivery costs to offset the drop in the business.
A packet sent from downtown to the city outskirts may now cost 20 yuan for delivery instead of the current 5 yuan, Guo said.
A parcel to remote Jinshan District from downtown may become as expensive as 160 yuan for same-day delivery.
The festival has always been linked with extravagance and became synonymous with bribery and crony corruption. Guo said some companies were still sending gift cards and coupons signed as “documents.”
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