Deutsche Post AG has confirmed it is in talks to buy the logistics operations of troubled retail group KarstadtQuelle AG. ‘We have made an offer, but a contract has not been signed yet,’ a Post spokesman said. A Karstadt spokesman also confirmed a deal is in the offing. ‘The negotiations are well advanced,’ he said, but declined to comment on when the deal might go through.
Read MoreDutch postal and logistics group TPG [TPG.AS] has is considering selective acquisitions in the European postal market, according to the Dutch newspaper the Het Financieele Dagblad. The move forms part of a wider contest in the European postal market, with the bigger operators competing to secure stakes in postal companies, as Europe’s postal sector opens up to competition.
As well as the media reports that it is looking at a European acquisition, TPG has also reiterated that it will meet its operating margin targets set for 2004. The targets include a margin of around 21.5% at its mail unit, 10% at the Express division and some 4% at the logistics unit. TPG’s chief financial officer, Jan Haars, said that the company would use the surplus cash for investments rather than share buy-backs from the Dutch government.
Yesterday, 8th December 2004, PostEurop’s Board elected Mr Bernard Damiens from De Post/ La Poste Belgium to the position of Chairman as of 1st January 2005.The Board also thanked outgoing Chairman Jack Dempsey from An Post, Ireland, for his hard work over the last five years.
Read MoreThe following is a commentary by Jerry Hempstead, Vice President of National Accounts, DHL, which was prepared for Traffic World magazine.
Innovation may not be the first word that springs to mind when thinking of the U.S. Postal Service. However, for the home parcel delivery business, the USPS has been at the forefront of innovation as it has coped with new competition and critical changes in the behavior of its customers. The millions of consumers who receive packages at their homes each year may not see it, but the residential delivery process has been completely transformed over the last five years, and the USPS is at the heart of it.
Read MoreBelgian enterprise minister Johan Vande Lanotte will call for offers from international partners for La Poste before Christmas, reported Belgian daily Le Soir, citing sources close to the case. In the next few days, the parliament will vote on the text of the law which will allow the government to negotiate with industrial partners and set the public participation at a minimum of 50.1 pct. The British, German and French postal services are said to be interested in entering the Belgian market and yesterday TPG NV reaffirmed its interest in taking a stake in La Poste.
Read MoreDHL today announced the launch of a new nationwide program with independent mail and parcel centers. Under DHL’s new Preferred Provider Program, participating retail shipping stores will adopt DHL as their preferred transportation provider for express delivery and shipping services, and promote DHL services to their customers.
Already more than 1,200 independent retail mail and parcel centers have signed up to participate in the program, the latest initiative launched by DHL as part of an ongoing commitment to better serve consumers and businesses throughout the country.
Read MoreThe European Commission said it will rule on the proposed joint venture between Axel Springer AG and Bertelsmann AG’s high-quality printing operations on Dec 23. Last week, the German cartel office told the commission that it wanted to rule on the deal, meaning the commission’s investigation was delayed by two weeks while it assessed the merits of the request. Sources told AFX News at the time that the commission was likely to turn down the request because of the implications for the European market as a whole.
Read MoreDeutsche Post AG has submitted a request to the German cartel office to buy the logistics operations of troubled retail group KarstadtQuelle AG, according to a statement on the cartel office’s website. Deutsche Post submitted its request on Dec 1, the statement said.
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