Author: Archive

Deutsche Post withdraws bid for La Poste

Posted by | Mar 3, 2005 | |

Deutsche Post AG has withdrawn its takeover bid for the Belgian state-owned La Post, according to a report in Die Welt, which did not cite any sources.

The bidding group of Dutch TPG and French La Poste is now considered front-runner to win the bid, it said.

Deutsche Post has also withdrawn its application to the German cartel office for approval of the acquisition of KarstadtQuelle’s department store and mail order logistics needs, Die Welt said.

Deutsche Post subsidiary DHL bought KarstadtQuelle’s logistics operations in late January in a deal worth 200 mln eur.

But both Deutsche Post and KarstadtQuelle rejected claims by the newspaper that the application was withdrawn because of concerns that the cartel office would not approve it in the first place.

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Norwegian postal monopoly ends in two years

Posted by | Mar 3, 2005 | |

In two years the Norwegian Postal Service (Posten) will no longer have monopoly on the distribution of letters in Norway. There is a majority in Parliament in favour of a Government proposal to end the monopoly by 2007. The Government states that it is important to maintain a high degree of service, and stipulates that mail shall be distributed six days a week, the same as today.
Also, there must be a unified nationwide postage for letters.

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Irish two-tier postal service proposed

Posted by | Mar 3, 2005 | |

The postal regulator, ComReg, has floated the idea of An Post offering a two-tier system for the delivery of standard mail. In a document issued yesterday, the regulator said An Post’s current performance on next-day delivery remained below acceptable standards and it was time to consider what services the company should be offering. It pointed out that in half of all EU states, customers were able to choose between a priority service with a next-day delivery target and a slower, but cheaper, non-priority service. “Where customers have a choice and there is a notable differential in price, about 70 per cent of mail is posted at the cheaper/slower non-priority postage rates,” the regulator said. The comments are included in a document which looks at what services An Post should be offering as a universal service provider. ComReg has published the document as part of a major consultation process.

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UK Mail contract with The Royal Bank of Scotland Group for upstream mail services

Posted by | Mar 3, 2005 | |

Business Post announces that, following a tender process, its business unit UK Mail has contracted to provide upstream mail services to The Royal Bank of Scotland Group, one of the UK’s largest mailers. Collections will commence today. Upstream mail services comprise the collection and national distribution of mail (with associated management information and IT) for next day delivery to Royal Mail, for local sorting and final delivery.

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Fortec grows in packaging

Posted by | Mar 3, 2005 | |

FORTEC Pallet Distribution Network, a leading next-day palletised freight delivery organisation, reports an influx of new business from manufacturers, importers, retailers and distributors in the packaging sector.

These are businesses looking to expand their customer base by providing low-cost guaranteed next-day deliveries nationwide, but held back by lack of transport or economic resources.

Says Alan Cramley, Fortec Pallet’s network development director: “A lot of small and medium sized businesses in the packaging sector are becoming aware that they could expand their customer base overnight by utilising the resources of the Fortec Pallet Network through its nearly 60 licensees located around the country.”

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UAE Emirates Post to buy Financial Services Company

Posted by | Mar 2, 2005 | |

UAE postal authority Emirates Post is nearing the purchase of a local financial services company with operations spreading across the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) states and some other Arab countries, it was reported on March 2, 2005.

The targeted company operates a network of some 42 branches. Emirates Post will announce officially the acquisition and the value of the deal within a one month period, the company’s director general, Abdullah Ibrahim al-Daboos, said, declining to mention the company’s name.

Al-Daboos also said that Emirates Post was to shortly announce the acquisition of a regional cargo and logistics company.

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Pro-Liberalisers urge more vigilance from national regulators

Posted by | Mar 2, 2005 | |

National regulators need to be more zealous in applying the 2002 postal services directive, the pro-liberalisation Free and Fair Post Initiative (FFPI) says. “The current situation is far from satisfactory in most member states” as anti-trust probes are “especially rare”, FFPI president Philippe Bodson said in a recent open letter to the European Commission. He wants regulators to pay more attention to price-fixing and cross-subsidisation, the practice where postal operators use profits made in the monopolised sector to fund parts of its business competing on the open market. Mr Bodson said the Commission’s “track record in this field is encouraging” and urged it to continue actively investigating anti-competitive behaviour.

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Company acquisitions and steady volume growth contribute to net turnover for Finland Post

Posted by | Mar 2, 2005 | |

Finland Post Group’s consolidated net turnover for 2004 rose to EUR 1,235.2 million, or by 8 per cent on a year earlier, stemming from company acquisitions in 2003 and 2004 and growth in delivery volumes. Consolidated operating profit climbed to EUR 95.2 million, up 29 per cent year on year, accounting for 7.7 per cent (6.4 per cent) of consolidated net turnover. Operating profit rose by EUR 15.6 million, or 22.1 per cent, if non-recurring items are taken into account. This improvement was a result of cost-efficiency gains achieved in production and Group functions. Profit for the financial year totalled EUR 69.6 million (EUR 46.8 million).

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