Fall in China means the highly anticipated hairy crab season. This crab comes from the freshwater lake downstream of the Yangtze River.

大闸蟹是中国人秋天餐桌上的一道圣品。这只蟹产于长江下游的淡水湖。

Twenty years ago, only locals living in the lake area could enjoy their taste.

二十年前，只有湖区周围的居民才能享用它的美味。

Today, more than 300 million Chinese hairy crabs are delivered to vendors and gourmands nationwide alive and within 72 hours.

今天，超过3亿只大闸蟹在72小时内被活着运送到全国各地的食客手中。

How China's express delivery defines speed?

中国快递如何定义速度？

With emerging markets taking active roles in globalization, each country depends more on trade, pushing express delivery to grow faster than average.

随着新兴市场积极参与全球化进程，各国贸易依存度迅速提升，为快递行业带来高于平均值的增长速度。

In 2018, China's express delivery sector handled 50 billion parcels, topping the world 5 years in a row.

2018年，中国快递业务量达500亿件，连续五年全球第一。

Today's volume aside, the concept of express delivery wasn't introduced to China until 1979.

但别看现在体量惊人，快递概念其实在1979年才被引入。

Starting 140 years late, the Chinese went from an annual 100 million parcels to a daily 100 million parcels in 18 years.

晚了140年起步，从全年1亿件做到单日1亿件，中国人仅仅用了18年。

As demand grows rapidly, the bar for on-time delivery has been set even higher. Apart from fresh food such as the Chinese hairy crab, the expected delivery time for normal packages is also a mere 72 hours.

在需求飞速增长的同时，人们对收货时间要求也越来越高。除了大闸蟹等生鲜，普通包裹的预期收货时间也只有72小时。

Can delivery crews work fast enough to satisfy customers' expectation?

中国快递员的速度能满足顾客的心理期待吗？

As soon as the delivery man picks up a package, all data on the bill is transferred to the system. By connecting to 200,000 hubs in the network, the system instantly calculates the optimal route for transportation. Next, the package arrives at the designated distribution center, and waits to be sorted by a robot.

从快递员收件的那一刻起，单子上的所有数据就被传送到了系统里。通过连接线下的20万个网点，系统很快便计算出了最经济的运输路线。下一步，这个包裹被派入指定的分拨中心，等待机器人拣选。

Currently, the algorithm-backed system also predicts restocking patterns based on big data. When the customer places an order, all goods are dispatched from the nearest warehouse to cut the shipping distance.

目前，算法还能根据消费大数据预测备货。顾客下单后，从准备好的仓储中心就近发货，缩短运送距离。

However, this smart operation does not bring up the rates. In 2018, the Pitney Bowes Parcel Shipping Index showed that the average shipping price of a parcel was $8.95 dollars in the U.S., whereas the same in China was $1.83 with even better service.

这种智能化的操作方式并没有提高递送快递的费用。2018年必能宝包裹运输指数显示，美国一件包裹的运输费用为8.95美元，而中国的花费只是它的1/5，且有更好的服务质量。

In some developed countries, it is not rare to miss the delivery man or watch a delivery truck leave right under your nose even if you're home. But in China, the delivery business thrives to make a difference in the last mile.

在一些发达国家，错过包裹投递并不罕见，甚至可能眼睁睁地看着货车远去。而在中国，快递却是靠最后一公里质量决胜。

This is a normal residential unit. Usually express delivery companies will work with property managers and convenience stores to set up free parcel pick-up hubs and smart lockers. Once a package reaches the locker, the customer will get a text message reminder and a pick-up code to retrieve the package anytime.

这是一个小区的居民楼底下。快递公司一般会和小区物业及便利店合作，设置免费代收点和智能快件箱。一旦包裹到箱，客户立刻收到短信通知，凭取货码拿货。

Convenience stations like this have already covered 75 large and medium-sized cities in China and tens of thousands of pick-up hubs have been set up in communities and on campuses. This way, consumers can easily take control of when they'd like to receive packages.

目前这样的便民网点已覆盖中国75个大中城市，数万个站点遍布社区和校园。让中国消费者自主把控快递收取时间。

The express delivery sector has strongly supported all kinds of economic activities. On China's “Black Friday” in 2013, the largest e-commerce platform Taobao sold 10 billion RMB worth of products in 6 hours. Five years later, it only took 2 minutes 5 seconds.

中国快递有力地支撑了社会发展的方方面面。2013年的中国“双11”当天，最大的电商平台淘宝卖出100亿产品耗时6小时。五年后，只用了125秒。

In addition to e-commerce, the sector also serves a wide range of industries, including finance, transportation, retail, medical rescue, you name it, boosting cross-border trade and driving the market to maturity.

除了电商消费，快递行业也服务于各行各业，金融、运输、零售、医疗救援等等，跨境贸易促成消费市场的成熟。

Express delivery in China created more than 3 million jobs, and reach the No.1 parcel volume in the world.

中国快递业创造了超过300万个工作机会，做到了业务量世界第一。