Suning, one of China's largest appliance retailers, has obtained an international express delivery license from the State Post Bureau, becoming the country's first e-commerce player to operate the service.

The move will enable the Nanjing-based company to expand the overseas market for its online retailing business while competing with FedEx, DHL, UPS and TNT in international express delivery service.

Before the announcement, Suning had already obtained a national license and 150-plus regional licenses for its express delivery services around the country.

It has become common practice for online shopping platforms to enter the logistics market. Jingdong Mall became China's first e-commerce company to obtain an express delivery license in 2012, and other online retailing platforms such as Vancl, Vipshop and Yihaodian followed suit in applying.

Industry insiders said service degradation as the result of price competition among express delivery companies has forced online retailing platforms to build their own delivery systems.