DHL Express Bets Big on China: New Shenzhen Gateway and Air Route Signal Growth in Asia-Europe Trade Lanes

DHL Express has completed a $204 million expansion of its “super gateway” air cargo terminal at Shenzhen Bao’an International Airport in China — its largest mainland China investment to date. The upgrade triples daily capacity to 992 tons and, at full ramp, is expected to push annual throughput above 286,000 tons, about 10 times the prior facility’s volume. The heavily automated terminal (high-speed sorting, robotics, automated guided vehicles) enables more direct cargo flights out of Shenzhen, reducing reliance on trucking shipments to DHL’s Hong Kong hub.

DHL also launched a new Boeing 767 freighter route linking Shanghai, Bangkok, Bahrain and Brussels, supporting its premium Heavyweight Express service for larger, time-sensitive shipments. Together, the moves target high-growth sectors — AI data centers, semiconductors, life sciences and next-gen energy — as well as e-commerce, and come as

DHL Group posted 22% profit growth in Q2 on $25.8 billion in revenue.

For Partners, the added capacity and new routing give more flexible, direct connectivity for shipments moving between China, Europe, the Middle East and other Asian markets.

Source: Kulisch, Eric. “DHL Express triples air cargo capacity with Shenzhen terminal expansion.” FreightWaves, August 14, 2026. https://www.freightwaves.com/news/dhl-express-triples-air-cargo-capacity-with-shenzhen-terminal-expansion