Toll may ring in new members to logistics family

The logistics and transport operator bought the 49% stake in China-based ST-Anda Logistics it did not already own on May 6.
The announcement came five days after the company said it would buy a significant stake in India’s BIC Logistics.
“We always have our eyes on anything,” a spokesman for Toll Holdings said.
The decision to buy the remaining shares in ST-Anda Logistics was a “critical element” of Toll’s growth strategy, managing director Paul Little said last week.
“The Toll Group has for some time considered our Chinese operations to be of strategic significance to Toll’s international business,” Mr Little said.
“Moving ST-Anda to a wholly-owned subsidiary will give Toll the opportunity to better integrate our operations within China and offer a more seamless total logistics solution to our existing customers both within China and in a more global setting.”
ST-Anda Logistics has warehouses and depots in more than 30 cities and a distribution network which stretches across 1,500 cities in China.
Mr Little said the acquisition would also help Toll Group forge better relationships with its major clients in China, which include fast-moving consumer goods makers Colgate Palmolive and Johnson & Johnson.
The acquisition was subject to Chinese regulatory approval, which would likely take three to six months, Mr Little said.
ST-Anda Logistics was expected to contribute to Toll Group’s bottom line earnings from the next financial year.
In a push to improve scope and scale, Toll said on May 1 that it would buy 40% of BIC Logistics, with scope to acquire a majority shareholding over the next two years. In the year ended March 31, BIC Logistics recorded a revenue of more than Rupee 1.3bn ($37m).
“This acquisition makes Toll one of the most significant foreign investors in India’s transport and logistics industry,” Mr Little said.