New Zealand Post to hike letter rates 17% from July

New Zealand Post is making the first increase to its standard letter rate for 18 months, with a 17% increase set to take effect from July. The postal operator said that the standard-size letter rate will increase from 60 cents ($0.49 USD) to 70c ($0.57 USD) to counter the “steadily” increasing costs of processing and delivery.

The price rise also reflects falling mail volumes as people shift towards using more electronic communications, it said.

However, New Zealand Post said it does not expect any further price changes to the standard letter rate for another two years.

The 17% hike in standard letter rates also affects the same percentage increase for FastMail letter services, with rates for medium-sized letters increasing to $1.40 ($1.14 USD), for large letters increasing to $2.10 ($1.71 USD), extra-large to $2.80 ($2.28 USD) and oversize to $3.50 ($2.85 USD).

New Zealand Post said it is also raising its rates for bulk mail from July 1, and was in the process of notifying customers about the changes.

PO Box rental fees are also set to go up from July, though customers would not see the increases until current annual rental agreements are due for renewal.

International

Rates for international courier services and some international business letter services will increase between 2.5% and 5% from the same July date.

International Express and Economy courier services will see prices rise 2.5%, International Bulk Mail rates will increase by 5%.

The international changes will not affect prices for standard International Air letters, or for parcels sent by International Air or International Economy. Domestic parcels are also unaffected, having had prices changed earlier this year.

Explaining the upcoming price uplifts, New Zealand Post said in a statement today: “The increases announced today reflect the changing postal environment locally and internationally.

“Letter volumes continue to decline due to increased uptake of electronic communication, while simultaneously the cost of transporting, processing and delivering letters steadily increases.”