The postal service provider announced in August that it is going through a strategic review, and group chief executive Paul Coutts gave an update: "SingPost's strategic vision of transforming from a postal provider to an e-commerce logistics player remains relevant and in the right direction." Revenue was up by 16.9 per cent in the group's postal segment, to S$148.3 million, on the back of more e-commerce deliveries. SingPost singled out China's Alibaba Group – which owns marketplaces such as Taobao – as a key driver of international mail volume tied to online shopping. Meanwhile, logistics revenue increased by 7.6 per cent to S$165.9 million, spurred in part by higher last-mile e-commerce deliveries in Singapore and Australia, although profits were squeezed by the intense price competition in Hong Kong.