NZ Post announces $60 million half-year profit
NZ Post posted a net profit after tax of $60 million for the six months up to 31 December.
In a statement issued yesterday (21 February), NZ Post said that the second half of 2021 saw “record parcel volumes”, but also a continuing decline in the volume of mail.
Commenting on the results, NZ Post Chief Executive David Walsh said: “We’ve just delivered another record-breaking Christmas, with an average of 9 parcels being delivered a second. We are extremely proud of how our people have responded, which has kept New Zealand connected during these uncertain times and helped many Kiwi businesses to generate revenue where they might otherwise have not been able to.”
Walsh continued: “Online shopping in New Zealand grew 38% for the six months ending 31 December 2021, compared to the same period in 2020, and we are expecting this growth to continue. NZ Post is committed to continuing to support New Zealand business and we’re pleased to be able to invest in our future, to meet the growth in online shopping.”
“We are well on track with those investments to increase our parcel processing capacity, with new sites and smarter technology. The first two new sites, Wellington and Christchurch, will become operational through the middle of 2022.”
Earnings for the parcels business reached $24 million, doubling the $12 million made in the second half of 2020, with a record 52.7 million parcels delivered.
However, 23.9 million fewer letters were sent (a 16% decrease), with a $7.1 million decrease in mail revenue.
Walsh added: “The growth in profit generated from parcel delivery is very encouraging. To achieve this we had to scale up to meet the record volumes and we brought on more people, vans, secured additional property and increased our flight capacity. While these increased operating costs have been absorbed currently, they will need to be recovered if the disruptions being experienced continue.
“We are continuing to see a significant decline in mail volumes, with revenue from mail declining $7.1 million compared to the same period last year – NZ Post is working towards long term financially sustainable solutions for mail, from further price increases, changes to our operations, and associated costs.”
