Booming sector

The nation's parcel delivery business has boomed in the past decade, along with the e-commerce sector.

"China has established a parcel delivery network extending to rural and urban areas across the country and connecting with the world, serving millions of users a day," Chen Kai, the bureau's deputy head, said.

"The service, linking millions of households, has become an inseparable part of people's lives. The network covers all counties and townships, and it is being extended to villages. More and more farmers have become richer thanks to the development of the network."

Wang Yuehan, an associate researcher with the bureau's development and research center, said, "The expansion of the parcel delivery network has further met the production and living needs of rural residents and constantly triggered the consumption potential in rural areas."

In the past, many of the network's benefits involved rural residents enjoying high-quality commodities when they purchased online and received orders from the urban areas.

Conversely, the expansion of logistics services in rural regions has proved effective at selling agricultural produce from rural to urban areas, also via the online shopping system. The development facilitates the government's strategic policy of rural revitalization.

Last year, 40 varieties of produce, including seafood from Rizhao in Shandong province, green tea from Xinyang, Henan province, and kiwi fruit from Xianyang, Shaanxi province, sold well online, with more than 10 million parcels sent across the country.

Agricultural produce, which can move more than 10 million parcels a year, is labeled "golden projects" by the State Postal Bureau to illustrate how parcel delivery services facilitate modern agriculture. The country now has 100 such projects.