UK Royal Mail acquires Spanish parcel carrier

The national postal carrier’s logistics subsidiary, General Logistics Systems, will pay a total of 71 million euros to acquire ASM Transporte Urgente, Spain’s second largest express parcel network.    The United Kingdom’s Royal Mail PLC has acquired Spanish parcel carrier ASM Transporte Urgente for 71 million euros (U.S. $79.9 million).
   The national postal carrier will purchase ASM via logistics subsidiary, General Logistics Systems (GLS), the company said in a statement. ASM is Spain’s second largest express parcel network and with 16 hubs and branches and more than 1,500 daily distribution routes, the acquisition will provide GLS with “significantly enhanced size and scale.”
    Primarily focused on the business-to-consumer delivery market, ASM accounts for about 10 percent of the national parcel market in Spain, according to GLS. ASM delivered 25 million parcels and generated 78 million euros in revenues last year alone.
   “ASM is a great strategic fit for GLS,” said CEO Rico Back. “The combination of ASM and GLS Spain means customers can benefit from a high-quality, express parcels service within Spain and also in the growing cross-border market.”
   The GLS Group currently employs over 14,000 people, with a network covering 41 countries through wholly owned and partner companies, according to its website. The company shipped 436 million parcels and took in 2.1 billion euros in revenues during the 2014/2015 fiscal year.
   Royal Mail said it expects the purchase to be profit accretive for GLS by 2018-19.