Online shopping delivers solid parcels growth for Norway Post
Norway Post has announced that it turned in “a good half-year performance”, as its parcel volumes have been boosted by the continuing growth in online shopping. Operating revenues in the first half of 2015 were NOK 12,407m, which was an increase of NOK 364m (3%) on the corresponding period of 2014. Operating profit before non-recurring items (EBIT) in the first half of the year amounted to NOK 314m, which is NOK 2m higher than at the same time last year.
“Developments in the mail segment were affected by the continued fall in letter volumes,” said Norway Post. “Mail sent by the public sector accounted for the greatest decline in addressed mail (-9%) as a result of the transition to digital solutions. The Logistics segment is influenced by the reduced activity in the oil industry, but managed to achieve a growth in operating revenues of 5.5%.”
Commented on the results, Norway Post’s CEO Dag Mejdell said: “The postal and logistics industry is faced with significant challenges. Mail volumes declined as expected by about 6%, while cyclical fluctuations in the oil industry affect the entire economy. However, we have delivered a performance in line with last year, which I’m very pleased about.”
The second quarter (Q2) of 2015 saw some significant developments for Norway Post, as the Norwegian Parliament adopted a new Postal Services Act on 9 June. As a result of the new act, Norway Post’s remaining monopoly on letters under 50 grams has been terminated – and the postal operator will no longer be required to distribute mail six days a week.
Mejdell considered how Norway Post will adapt to the changing market: “Our biggest challenge is digitisation, but full competition for postal services will further tighten the requirements. I’m confident that Norway Post will succeed against the competition. We provide world-class postal services, we cover every household and company across the country, and we have 18 000 skilled employees.”
Norway Post reported that its total e-commerce volume has increased by 8% during the past year. “People are shopping more and more online. That means solid growth in parcel volumes for Norway Post,” commented Mejdell.
