DHL Group's air and ocean freight business acquired Aero Cargas, a logistics and freight forwarding company in Uruguay.

The German logistics company said late Monday that the acquisition, by its DHL Global Forwarding unit, strengthens its presence in Latin America and gives the business its first direct operation in Uruguay, an increasingly important logistics hub for regional and international trade.

With geopolitical tensions and shifts in global shipping routes exposing vulnerabilities in traditional trade lanes, DHL said shippers are seeking more resilient and efficient routing through Latin America.

"Uruguay stands uniquely positioned to capture this shift," it said in a statement.

DHL said Aero Cargas brings expertise in air and ocean freight, industrial project logistics, land transport and customized services using multiple modes of transport. It also strengthens DHL's capabilities in life sciences and healthcare, free-trade zone logistics and regional inventory management.

Erik Meade, chief executive of DHL Global Forwarding Latin America, said that over $1 billion of pharmaceuticals move through Uruguay annually, with global pharma brands increasingly relying on the country as a regional distribution center.

"As Uruguay serves as a key regional distribution hub for active ingredients and finished products arriving from Europe and North America to be reprocessed, repackaged, and re-exported to markets like Brazil, Argentina, Chile, and Colombia, this step ensures our clients can immediately tap into our specialized capabilities to navigate Latin America's most critical supply chains," he said.

Financial terms weren't disclosed.