China's postal service sector has set the goal of handling more than 150 billion parcels in 2025, the State Postal Bureau of China said recently in a five-year plan to guide the industry's development.

According to the plan－also issued by the Ministry of Transport and the National Development and Reform Commission－the annual operating revenue of the postal industry in 2025 will exceed 1.8 trillion yuan ($280 billion).

The sector will continue to connect rural and urban areas, as well as China and overseas destinations, by taking steps such as setting up more transfer hubs.

In addition, more smart facilities will meet the diverse needs of customers in cities to send and receive parcels, and all villages will have access to parcel delivery service.

The sector will invest more in research and development and establish national labs to improve its innovative capability.

Zeng Junshan, director of the bureau's policy and regulation department, said the plan has set goals for development in five aspects－scale, infrastructure network, innovative capability, service quality and governance efficiency.

He also noted that 12 indicators have been brought to evaluate the development, such as revenue, the amount of recycled parcel wrappings and the increased rate of R&D investment for eight major delivery companies.

China's parcel delivery business has boomed in recent decades. It handled more than 100 billion parcels last year, with expectations of reaching 150 billion in 2025.

"China will make efforts to improve the quality of postal services to make them faster and more convenient," said Liu Ying, deputy director of the department.

The sector will set a standard fee for parcel delivery services, and more parcel stations and smart facilities will be established, Liu said.

In rural areas, the sector aims to improve resource sharing, encouraging companies to team up to carry out sorting, transportation and collection to improve logistics in rural areas.

She also noted that the sector will improve contactless services, such as promoting unmanned vehicles for delivery and transporting, as well as improving relevant infrastructure.