UPS ACQUIRES BORDER BROKERAGE

UPS ACQUIRES BORDER BROKERAGE    United Parcel Service has acquired Border Brokerage Co. to strengthen its position in the U.S. northern border customs brokerage business.
   The Blaine, Wash.-based customs broker has about 150 employees and branch offices along the state’s border at Bellingham, Sumas and Oroville.
   “The acquisition allows us to expand our geographic presence and clear more goods along the northern border,” said Mark Dickens, spokesman for UPS Customshouse Brokerage. The deal is expected to close this week.
   Border Brokerage will join another broker recently bought by UPS — Fulfillment Systems International, based in North Tonawanda, N.Y. — under UPS Full Service Brokerage, a newly formed subsidiary of UPS Customshouse Brokerage. The purpose of the subsidiary is to provide customs clearance services to customers using any type of carrier or mode of transport.
   UPS plans to continue expanding its brokerage operations on the northern border and more acquisitions are expected in the near future.