Author: Archive

Kenya Post moves into global money transfer business

Posted by | Jul 19, 2007 | |

The Postal Corporation of Kenya is digging in for a piece of the growing money transfer business to turn around its fortunes.

Mr Fred Omondi, the post master general, said the corporation had picked on money transfer as the turnaround programme it needs to overcome challenges that providers of similar services are facing globally and remain in business.

“Initially, we only need to control three per cent of the total remittances to remain in business,” he said. With the remittances estimated to have hit the Sh70 billion mark last year, controlling one per cent of the business would see the corporation handle Sh700 million, earning it not less than Sh100 million.

The drive for a marketshare kicked off in the United States last week with aggressive marketing of the company’s electronic money transfer system called Postapay.

The initiative comes at a time when the corporation is facing stiff competition in the money transfer market, with the launch by the country’s two mobile operators Safaricom and Celtel of SMS-based money transfer services.

Competition in the courier market that has been the main revenue earner for the company has also intensified, following the entry of more than 100 players, reducing its marketshare to five per cent.

Other than targeting foreign remittances, PCK has put aside Sh150 million for value added services that it intends to roll-out.

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UK Businesses meet post chief to discuss rural pricing zone proposal

Posted by | Jul 18, 2007 | |

Chairman of the Postal Services Commission Nigel Stapleton met local businesses to discuss the Royal Mail’s controversial proposals for zonal pricing during a visit to Exeter.

The proposals, which have been submitted by the Royal Mail to Postcomm, are still being considered by the regulator.

The move would see an increase in the cost of business post to rural areas, potentially having a large effect on businesses in the area.

Domestic post would not be affected and the universal price of a first class stamp to post a letter anywhere in the country would remain.

But business post may incur different zonal charges.

Mr Stapleton said Postcomm would be ready to make a tentative decision in about a month’s time and the new pricing structure could be in place by 2008.

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Nightfreight boss's surprise delivery

Posted by | Jul 18, 2007 | |

The boss of a major West Midland delivery company has quit unexpectedly, it was announced yesterday.

Steve Allen was said to have resigned as chief executive of privately-held Nightfreight to “pursue interests outside the group” with immediate effect.

The announcement came after Mr Allen pulled out of a planned interview with The Birmingham Post last Friday without giving a reason.

The Willenhall-based company, which has been through two management buy-outs since 2001, refused to expand on a short statement released yesterday.

Chairman Tim Redburn said: “Over the past 12 months Steve has been instrumental in implementing the group’s strategy which has resulted in good growth in difficult trading conditions.

“However Steve has taken the decision that, moving forward, the business would benefit from a more operationally-focused CEO – a decision the group has supported.”

John Aspin, a non-executive director, has taken over as chief executive “to maintain business continuity and ensure that it is ‘business as usual'”.

In March, the company, which employs more than 2,400 people at more than 70 sites around the UK, announced a 250 per cent rise in operating profit in 2006 to pounds 3.1 million on turnover 6.8 per cent ahead at pounds 8.4 million.

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Update on further strike action by the Communication Workers Union

Posted by | Jul 18, 2007 | |

Royal Mail is hugely disappointed that the Communication Workers Union has called for more damaging strike action. Strike action does not change Royal Mail’s absolute need to modernize, as all our major rivals have already done, if we are to be able to compete successfully in an increasingly challenging marketplace and continue to provide great customer service into the future.

The industrial action announced last Wednesday 18th July by the CWU amounts to a further 24 hour strike which hits different Royal Mail sites at different times. The union said similar action will also take place the following week. As before, the company has contingency arrangements in place to ensure that we can deliver the mail to our customers as quickly as possible.

The union’s stated position that it wants to cause the maximum disruption to Royal Mail, and therefore its customers, is completely at odds with its public stance of supporting the postal service – and its decision to block changes in 240 sites, as already agreed with our people locally, is at odds with its claim to be in favor of modernization.

Royal Mail has already spent months negotiating with the CWU on this year’s pay and on our need to modernize this business. Those negotiations suffered when the union pulled down the shutters on change and stopped when they withdrew and announced their intention to ballot for industrial action on our offer.

The union is also planning a further half-day of strike action at main Crown Post Office branches on Thursday 24th June morning, despite that fact that during last Monday’s half day strike only seven out of 458 Crown Post Office branches were affected, with the rest of the 14,000 strong network working as normal.

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Baba Mori, Post Master General of Nigeria: We want NIPOST to be a one stop shop

Posted by | Jul 18, 2007 | |

Ibrahim Baba Mori, Post Master General of Nigeria, recently took a facility tour of Speedyprints, a subsidiary of Superflux, one of its partners. In this interview with GODFREY OFURUM, he gave insight into their relationship, the postal reform bill and more

Postal reform

Well, it depends on what the government wants to achieve at the end of the day and how they want to position NIPOST. But from our own point of view, we are looking even from the consultant’s point of view.

Firstly, we want to strengthen the present status or position of NIPOST and then the next level will be to commercialize certain aspects of the post. And as far as we are concerned, for over four to five years, we would have involved the private sector in our operations. We do not move our mails in the highways; some other persons do that for us. Even though you see the trucks in our coolers and names but we do it in partnership with some companies. Those companies that move our mails solely own those trucks. We have extended such partnership to move our mails along the West Coast of Africa. So, we have two trucks that move our mails from Badagry in Lagos State to Cote d’Ivoire through Benin, through Accra and the Gambia.

Effect of postal reform

Some of the challenges before NIPOST are the frequent changes of peoples’ addresses. You will agree with me that even the place you reside now; the streets are not well numbered. And yet people will want NIPOST to do magic and some people may not renew their postal boxes and by our rule, once you do not renew your box numbers, you will not get your mails and those are some of the problems.

Effect of reforms on mail delivery

We have not shifted grounds from what we promised Nigerians. The 72 hours, 36 hours, 24 hours and 12 hours we promised are still in place. For example, a letter from Lagos to Kaduna should not take more than 72 hours. However, it depends on what part of Kaduna the mail is going to. If it is actually going to a mailbox in Kaduna town, I can tell you that in less than 36 hours it will be in Kaduna.

But also if it is going out of Kaduna town, it will take another 12 hours, but in most cases over 75 percent of letters get to their destinations in 72 hours.

Competition

I have said this umpteenth time that the private sector will play a complementary role when they come on board. Currently, there is no clear cut difference between the services rendered by the private courier companies and what we offer.

I am not sure you are aware that most of the services of these courier companies terminate where you have airports and probably seaports. If you are now talking about a mail going to my state, Kebbi, the best they can do is to get it to Sokoto. They might not be able to take it to my village. If you talk in terms of comparative advantage, that has to do with things they have and we do not have, vice versa. But when it comes to spread, there is no way private courier companies can match our business.

Grow the mail

Grow the mail is an initiative of NIPOST, in partnership with some private companies including Speedyprints. However, the modalities are still being walked out. The aim is to increase the volume of mails and also to let people know that they can place adverts on our envelopes.

Grow the mail benefits

In NIPOST, we are concerned about what we call the last mile. And that last mile also depends on what time the last mail will get to its destination. I believe from this meeting Speedyprints will be able to solve a number of problems for us. At least, they will be able to sort the mails and that is what we call the last line. Instead of us taking the mails from different areas, they will do it for us and all we would do is to know the destination of the mails and as soon as they come, we arrange them in states and towns and put them in our system.

Impression of Speedyprint

I am happy that I was able to make it to this place today because I had been

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Chronopost cuts Toulouse delivery emissions by 58 pct

Posted by | Jul 18, 2007 | |

Chronopost, La Poste’s express delivery operator, said it reduced greenhouse gas emissions in Toulouse by 58 pct in 2006 thanks to using environmentally-friendly delivery vehicles.

The express company said that 70 pct of its customers recognized the importance of using “clean” vehicles for environmental protection, and 54% of them were prepared to accept additional delays in deliveries for the sake of the environment.

The company’s “Espace de Livraison Urbaine” (ELU), a special collection and delivery operation for the southern French city, went into operation in 2005. From a 280 msq base close to Toulouse airport, Chronopost operates six morning and four afternoon delivery rounds. City-centre distribution is carried out with six environmentally-friendly vehicles, including three electrically-powered vans and two natural gas-operated vehicles.

Moreover, the reduction in distances traveled during delivery rounds had improved social conditions for workers, and was economically viable since savings in time and energy offset the additional investment, Chronopost noted. A similar scheme is in operation in Paris, the express company added.

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Company won't increase its offer to buy ABX

Posted by | Jul 18, 2007 | |

ASTAR Air Cargo Holdings LLC said Wednesday that it still wants to buy competitor ABX Air Inc., but will not increase its offer of USD 7.75 per share for ABX, the cargo airline.

ASTAR also extended until the close of business on July 27 its deadline for receiving a response from ABX Air’s board of directors to the purchase offer, which could total more than USD 450 million. ABX said on Tuesday 17th July that its board is reviewing the offer and expects to respond this week.

John Dasburg, president and chief executive officer of Miami-based ASTAR, said he regards his company’s purchase offer as fair, even though Wall Street investors have pushed ABX’s stock price above USD 8 per share periodically since ABX revealed the ASTAR offer on June 28.

Shares of ABX closed at USD 7.91 on Wednesday, down 4 cents.

Dasburg, in a letter Wednesday to the ABX Air board of directors, said ASTAR’s original offer of USD 7.75 per share is fair in light of market prices of ABX stock prior to ASTAR’s offer. Dasburg also suggested that ABX’s value would suffer if the company should reject ASTAR’s bid.

ASTAR Air Cargo flies air cargo between the United States and destinations in Europe and the Middle East. It directs flight operations from Wilmington, and has other operations in New York, Los Angeles and Miami.

ABX is a major employer in Clinton County and surrounding counties with a work force of about 7,500 people at the Wilmington hub.

ASTAR was formed in 2003 after the spinoff of DHL Airways from DHL Worldwide Express.

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Volkswagen group tips DHL for award

Posted by | Jul 18, 2007 | |

German automaker Volkswagen has tipped DHL Exel Supply Chain for its Volkswagen Group Award for outstanding supplier performance in Mexico for 2006, the logistics services provider has announced.

The annual award is given to the Volkswagen supplier that achieves the company’s highest total weighted performance score in the areas of logistics, service, quality, compliance, on-time delivery, cost and communication. This is the second time DHL Exel Supply Chain has earned the award.

In addition to logistics, Volkswagen Group Awards are presented to suppliers for product quality, technological development, environmental initiatives and business entrepreneurship.

DHL Exel Supply Chain operates two Volkswagen facilities in Mexico, including a sequence center and a cross-dock facility near the company’s Puebla manufacturing plant.

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