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International Post Corporation gives members access to best-in-class cross-border technology

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International Post Corporation (IPC) is enabling its members to meet the growing cross-border regulatory challenges through the provision of industry-leading technologies.

One of the major challenges facing postal operators is Import Control System 2 (ICS2) which is underpinned by a large-scale advance cargo information system.

The first ICS2 release occurred in March 2021 with further releases scheduled for March 2023 and March 2024. All require mandatory advance electronic data (AED).

IPC is supporting its members in meeting the requirements of ICS2 through partnerships with companies including Hurricane Commerce.

Hurricane has established itself as the world’s leading cross-border data provider to posts with customers including Royal Mail, An Post, Australia Post and Emirates Post.

Hurricane’s Aura and Zephyr data solutions have been integrated by IPC into its Dynamic Merchant Platform (DMP).

Aura can support members with duty and tax calculation, prohibited and restricted goods screening and denied parties screening.

Zephyr is Hurricane’s data enhancement service and ensures that shipments have the right data – including HS6 codes, product descriptions and 8- and 10- digit import and export codes – to pass smoothly through customs.

Holger Winklbauer, CEO of the IPC, said: “As posts are faced with increasing cross-border regulatory requirements, their success depends on being able to harness best-in-class technologies.”

He added: “Through partnerships with the likes of Hurricane Commerce, IPC is enabling our members and other posts to meet the ICS2 requirement for mandatory AED, but also many other customs and security requirements, through a common system, resulting in a reduction in complexity, implementation costs, and time.”

David Spottiswood, Co-Founder of Hurricane Commerce, said: “Submitting incomplete or incorrect data causes shipments to be held by customs until the appropriate data has been provided.

“This impacts hugely on transit times, operational efficiency, costs and customer experience.

“Hurricane is delighted to be a partner to the IPC whose forward-thinking, innovative approach is supporting its members in meeting the challenges of ICS2 and other regulatory events through the integration of cutting-edge data technologies.”

IPC – www.ipc.be

Hurricane Commerce – www.hurricanecommerce.com

 

Hurricane in the media:

Post and Parcel – IPC gives members access to best-in-class cross-border technology

Parcel and Post Technology International – International Post Corporation gives members access to cross-border technology

Air Cargo Week – International Post Corporation provides members with cutting edge technology

Apex Insight – IPC works with posts to supply customers and excise tech solutions

Marc Paingt joins Hurricane Commerce as Senior Strategic Adviser

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Hurricane Commerce is delighted to announce that Marc Paingt has joined as Senior Strategic Adviser – Postal Sector.

Marc has enjoyed a distinguished career in the postal industry with roles having included Director – International Relations at bpost and Terminal Dues Manager for the International Post Corporation [IPC]. More recently, Marc has been President of his own consultancy, Marc Paingt Consulting.

Marc will be working closely with Hurricane Co-Founder David Spottiswood and Business Development Director Rob Dundas in his new role, advising on Hurricane’s partnerships with the IPC and the Universal Postal Union [UPU] as well as other key postal relationships.

Marc, who is based in Paris, says: “Increasing regulations and tougher customs enforcement means that having complete and accurate data has never been more important.

“I am delighted to join the Hurricane team and to help the postal community learn more about its best-in-class solutions.”

David Spottiswood, Co-Founder of Hurricane Commerce, said: “We are delighted to have Marc join Team Hurricane. He is a hugely respected figure in the postal sector and we look forward to him supporting our global expansion plans.”

Hurricane is the only cross-border eCommerce data provider with a truly global customer footprint with customers and partners including Royal Mail, Emirates Post, Australia Post, An Post, SEKO Logistics, AEB, EVRi and Plusius as well as the UPU and IPC.

International Post Corporation (IPC) survey highlights vital importance of complete and accurate parcel data

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A major survey of consumers in 40 countries worldwide has highlighted the impact of key regulatory events on global eCommerce.

The report, conducted by the International Post Corporation, involved 33,000 shoppers and showed that Brexit and the EU’s abolition of the VAT exemption on low-value goods had influenced consumer shopping habits.

Thirty-nine percent of respondents stated the new VAT rules have impacted their cross-border purchases, with over half stating that the value of items purchased has increased and/or that they have now pay additional custom fees compared to previous years.

The introduction of the new laws has seen a significant increase in the number of people who have had to pay eCommerce related fees, with 21% having paid import fees for purchases this year compared to 13% in 2020.

Since the increase in customs and import fees, the report has shown that China has dropped three or more percentage points from 17 of the 40 countries surveyed as the most recent country of purchase.

Overall, the appetite for online shopping, including cross-border, remained strong. The survey revealed that consumers have continued to shop regularly online, with 22% of consumers shopping online at least once a week and 79% of consumers shopping online at least once a month.

Online shoppers worldwide continued to use eCommerce giants Amazon, AliExpress and eBay to make most of their online purchases, with Amazon accounting for 26%, AliExpress 19% and eBay 10%.

Between 2019 and 2021, Wish and eBay lost significant cross-border market share, while Amazon increased in several countries.

One of the big movers is the Chinese clothing e-retailer Shein which has increased significantly from 0% in 2019 to 3% in 2021.

The IPC’s survey reinforces the requirement for postal operators, carriers and their customers to ensure that their parcels have complete and accurate shipment data. Hurricane Commerce is a partner of the IPC with our Zephyr and Aura solutions available to its members.

Complete and accurate data is the only way to ensure that customers’ parcels are able to arrive when they expect, without delays at customs, while transparency around VAT and duties payable is also key in ensuring the best possible customer experience.

Delivery speeds improved in 2021 compared to 2020, as delivery providers recovered from the impact of the Covid-19 pandemic on international logistics.

Almost half (46%) of the respondents stated that they were either “extremely or very satisfied” with the speed at which their package was delivered.

Survey respondents were asked how long their purchase took to arrive, and the most common answer was 2-3 days (17%), with 4-5 days coming in second with 16% of participants.

The returning of eCommerce shopping items rose to 14% this year, with consumers from the US (27%), Australia (25%) and the UK (24%) returning the most.

IPC’s CEO, Holger Winklbauer, said: “E-commerce has long cemented itself as the backbone of the postal industry, therefore it is vital the posts are able to understand and adapt to the ever-growing needs and concerns of its customers.”

Hurricane’s Zephyr and Aura data solutions are increasingly being adopted by both established and fast-growing posts and carriers including Australia Post, Emirates Post, SEKO eCommerce, An Post and Royal Mail. Users in China include 4PX and Yanwen.

Martyn Noble, CEO of Hurricane Commerce, said: “Postal operators and carriers recognise the huge opportunities for growth offered by cross-border eCommerce, but they also increasingly understand the role that harnessing best-in-class data technology has in providing the platform for success.

“While posts such as Emirates Post, An Post and Australia Post were early adopters of Hurricane’s technology, many other posts, of all sizes, have since selected us as their data partner of choice, as have many other logistics providers across the globe.”

For more information about the IPC’s survey visit https://www.ipc.be/news-portal/general-news/2022/01/19/13/23/ipc-survey-shows-impact-brexit-and-eu-customs-eu-changes