UK Mail sees 4.8% profit rise
UK Mail has revealed an increase in Group profit of 4.8% for the six months ending 30 September 2010. Profit before tax reached £7.4m, compared to 2009 levels of: £7m. Group revenues were up 1.3% to £190.7m (2009: £188.2m). Mail revenues rose to 1.5% to £85.9m (2009: £84.6m), whilst parcels revenues increased 1.3% to £81m (2009: £80m).
The company said that its balance sheet was “strong”, as it revealed that net cash at period end was £8.5m, compared to £3.6m last year.
Guy Buswell, CEO of UK Mail, said: “The Group has delivered a satisfactory performance in the first half, with continued revenue and profit growth and our new products and services making good progress.
“In Mail, we are targeting revenue growth progression in the second half, as the impact of new customer wins and growth in Packets, together with additional volumes from existing customers, more than offset the ongoing overall decline in the UK transactional mail market.
“In Parcels, the continued progress of our Retail Logistics service should provide further growth opportunities in the second half and there are some signs that the general pricing environment is improving.
“As always, market conditions for the balance of the year remain hard to predict and the final three months of the calendar year represent the key trading period for our business.
“Overall the Group is in a good position, being well financed, with a strong presence in all our chosen markets, with increasing efficiency being achieved in our network, and new products and services starting to gain traction.”