APL enhances new express service with same-day availability at L.A.

Container line APL Ltd. said today it will enhance its "Eagle Express X" (EXX) China-to-U.S. expedited delivery service when it launches in August by offering same-day availability of cargo at the Port of Los Angeles' Global Gateway South (GGS) terminal.

Singapore-based APL said EXX shipments will be discharged to a dedicated fleet of trucks operating at separate in-gate lanes reserved for the service. This will allow for faster cargo collections and deliveries to the local California market, the company said.

Announced in late February, EXX is a weekly service linking the Chinese ports of Shanghai and Ningbo with Los Angeles with 11- and 12-day transit times respectively, and fast discharges. The service's first sailing is scheduled to depart Ningbo Aug. 2 and Shanghai Aug. 3. The vessel will arrive in Los Angeles Aug. 14.

APL is a unit of French container line CMA CGM, which acquired then-APL parent Neptune Orient Lines in December 2015 for US$2.4 billion.

The EXX service is another step by container lines to develop premium delivery services to better compete with other transport modes.