New figures show that UK international hauliers had a terrible 2001.
Figures released this week show that the UK international road haulage industry is in crisis. It is unable to cope with competition from low cost foreign haulers. With an increase in fuel tax expected in the annual Budget, this imbalance is likely to widen, leading to a swathe of job losses and company failures.
Simon climbs on port takeover report
Read MoreCONSIGNIA will say this week that liberalisation of the British and continental postal markets will take Pounds 750m a year off operating profits from 2006.
The bleak forecast will be contained in Consignia’s submission to Postcomm, the postal regulator. The group, which is losing Pounds 1.5m a day, is expected to say changes in European regulation will cost it Pounds 500m a year.
SINN Fein TD Caoimhghin O Caolain has blasted the decision of An Post to charge different postal rates for the Six Counties.
He says increases in postal charges, introduced this week, will mean that it will cost more to post a letter to the North than within the 26 counties.
“This is a grossly partitionist decision by An Post and it should be overturned by the Government,” he said.
The price of stamps is set to rise by a penny as postal industry regulator Postcomm bows to pressure from Consignia and the Government.
Senior Consignia sources indicate that they are confident Postcomm will agree at least to a rise to 28p on first-class letters to mitigate the effect of its plans for the staged opening of the postal market to competition.
In January, Postcomm head Graham Corbett unveiled plans to introduce competition in bulk letter deliveries this spring, ending Consignia’s monopoly with full liberalisation by 2006.
STRUGGLING post offices could close because the Scottish Executive won’t handover pounds 1.5million allocated to them by Westminster.
Consignia, which runs the Post Office, hit out at the Executive for failing to give out cash from the Urban Deprived Fund.
They claim around 150 post offices in Scotland’s poorer areas, such as Easterhouse in Glasgow and Wester Hailes in Edinburgh, could benefit.
Postal officials said Friday they hope sometime rival and current business partner FedEx Corp. will put its lobbying muscle behind a reform plan that would give the Postal Service more flexibility to change prices while retaining its monopoly over first-class mail.
Postmaster General Jack Potter also said they plan to close as many as 500 small post offices and some of their 400 distribution centers. But he promised no stamp hike in 2003 if, as expected, the Postal Board of Governors approves an increase from 34 to 37 cents starting this summer.
Growing competition among courier service providers has prompted business players to provide additional services for customers. Fast delivery on its own no longer impresses users.
Courier service providers have realized that “express” is not the only term sought by customers, but also logistics, transportation, customs brokerage and inventory management.
With the increase in Internet usage, few sectors still require the human and physical touch. However, it will likely remain impossible to send a parcel containing chocolate to the front door of a customer’s house by Internet. Therefore, courier service providers are still needed.
Post & Parcel Magazine is our print publication, released 3 times a year. Packed with original content and thought-provoking features, Post & Parcel Magazine is a must-read for those who want the inside track on the industry.
