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DHL TO INVEST HEAVILY IN US OPERATIONS

MIAMI - Deutsche Post AG's DHL express courier unit will spend $1.2 billion to bolster its business in the US, a huge market in which DHL runs a distant third behind arch-rivals Federal Express and UPS.

DHL, which recently launched a $150 million US marketing program, said it will invest the money over three years in sorting centers and information technology.

Last year, DHL paid $1 billion for the US ground operations of Seattle-based Airborne Inc., then the No. 3 US express and packages-delivery group, and is aiming to "significantly increase its US market share of 6% to 7%.

That deal stirred investor worries about a price war that could hurt profits at UPS and FedEx, which together dominate the $48 billion-a-year market for US parcel deliveries with an estimated 70% market share.

The DHL moves in the US come as DP Chief Executive Klaus Zumwinkel of parent Deutsche Post campaigns to turn Deutsche Post into the world's biggest logistics business, partly using money raised from the sale of shares and bonds in its Postbank unit.

Zumwinkel plans to accelerate expansion in the US and Asia to reduce his company's dependence on its German postal service monopoly.

Deutsche Post has said it will merge DHL with its Danzas and Euro Express units in Germany, which may reduce the work force at the businesses by 4,000 jobs.

ISRAEL ISSUES NEW VESSEL SECURITY REGULATIONS

TEL AVIV, Israel - All ships entering Israeli ports will need to be equipped with new electronic identification devices starting immediately, Israel's Transportation Ministry has announced.

The device, which will need to be installed on both domestic and foreign ships wishing to dock in Israel, has an electronic tag that emits a special detection code, enabling Israel to decide whether to grant authorization before the ship reaches shore.
 
Israel has been increasingly concerned that terrorists utilizing a passenger, cargo, or ferry vessels to carry out a terrorist attacks.

The new safety standard - which is also recommended by the International Maritime Organization - will allow Israel to identify all ships while they are still at sea, as opposed to the traditional method of ships using a short-range communication system to identify themselves once they draw close to an Israeli port.

CZECH AIRLINES NEARS PRIVATIZATION

PRAGUE, Czech Republic - CSA, the Czech republic's national air carrier, will be ready for total privatization in two years, according to the airline's president.

The government owns a controlling stake of 56.9% in CSA, which is being restructured to prepare for privatization in 2006.

CSA also recently announced a net profit of $2.71 million last year, after losing some $2.3 million the year before. The rebound was due largely to a 17% rise in passenger numbers to a record 3.6 million in 2003, the company said.

CSA is a member of the Sky Team Alliance led by US-based Delta Air Lines and the Paris-headquartered Air France Group.

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