"Although the current health crisis has brought many areas of life to a standstill, there is no pause in global trade," says John Pearson, CEO of DHL Express. "Driven by globalization, digitalization and uniquely high demand during peak shopping seasons, our global e-commerce volumes grew by more than 40 percent in the fourth quarter. With the purchase of eight new wide-body freighters, we are underlining our conviction that e-commerce is an ongoing megatrend. We therefore wanted to react early and start 2021 with this investment in our future."

The twin-engine cargo aircraft - the B777 - will support future growth. The aircraft also contributes to the company's sustainability goals: compared to the older B747-400, the fuel-saving technology of the B777 reduces CO2 emissions by up to 18 percent. The B777F is the world's largest and most efficient twin-engine long-haul cargo aircraft with a range of 9,200 kilometers and can transport a maximum cargo volume of 102,010 kilograms. This enables DHL Express to save fuel and operate with fewer stopovers, thus reducing the associated landing fees on long-haul routes.

Prior to the new order announced today, DHL Express had received the first ten new B777F aircraft as part of its 2018 order of 14 aircraft. Thanks to the timely delivery, DHL was able to meet the unprecedented high customer demand during last year's heavy traffic. Boeing's forecast for the global air cargo market in 2020 (2020 World Air Cargo Forecast) expects a significant increase in demand for new and converted cargo aircraft. Fleet growth of over 60 percent is expected over the next 20 years. This can also be seen in the growing demand for cross-border, time-critical shipments that DHL Express is experiencing. For this reason, both companies have agreed supplementary options and purchase rights for four additional aircraft. This move underlines DHL Express' fundamental role in global trade. DHL Express operates over 600 flights every day to 220 countries and territories with a fleet of more than 260 aircraft and 17 partner airlines.