The impact of the COVID-19 prevention and economic interventions on express delivery industry: Evidence from China

Abstract

As a fundamental logistics service, the express delivery (ED) industry provides production and consumption activities to maintain efficient supply chain operations. It plays an important role in promoting industrial development and maintaining daily life and consumption. This study examined the effects of COVID-19 on the ED industry using ED package delivery data from 31 provinces (autonomous regions and municipalities) in China. Using a difference-in-differences method, the COVID-19 outbreak was found to have a positive effect and epidemic prevention and control (EPC) policies were found to have negative effects on the development of the ED industry. In addition to EPC policies, the Chinese government has implemented other short-term economic interventions (SEI), such as the resumption of work and production (RWP), policies to balance economic growth, and epidemic prevention. This study divided the pandemic period into three stages to analyze the different impacts of EPC and SEI policy changes on the ED industry. The RWP policies adopted during the pandemic positively impacted the volume and income of packages delivered to the ED industry. The conclusions of this study are significant for the ED industry in addressing public health emergencies and for the Chinese government to formulate EPC and SEI policies during epidemic periods.