Year: 2005

Japanese gov’t shows readiness to make more concessions on postal reform

Posted by | Apr 19, 2005 | |

The government reiterated its readiness Tuesday to make more concessions over its plans to privatize Japan’s postal system as the ruling Liberal Democratic Party continued last-ditch efforts to come up with specific compromises to demand. “We are considering a framework to fully privatize Japan Post’s financing and insurance functions while not negatively affecting (special post offices and those who run them),” Chief Cabinet Secretary Hiroyuki Hosoda said in a press conference. “We are engaged in discussions on the assumption any scheme that falls in line with the purpose of that framework would be okay,” the top government spokesman said. The LDP reopened a meeting of its policy panel on postal reform Tuesday afternoon after failing to reach a consensus in its marathon talks from Monday afternoon through predawn hours Tuesday.

Read More

KfW to sell more shares in Deutsche Post

Posted by | Apr 19, 2005 | |

Kreditanstalt fur Wiederaufbau (KfW), the German state development bank, is expected to sell a stake that it holds in German postal service operator Deutsche Post on behalf of the state in June. It is thought that the bank wishes to take advantage of the favourable share price. Provided that the German government agrees, the bank can sell the shares after May 28, six months after the last time that a stake held by the state in Deutsche Post was sold.

Read More

Romanian Posta Romana considers financial-banking services in next years

Posted by | Apr 19, 2005 | |

Romanian state-owned postal company Posta Romana plans to start offering financial-banking services in the next few years in a bid to expand its product portfolio, company’s general director Dan Mihai Toader said on April 19, 2005.
The company intends to sign partnerships to operate public telephony services, electronic services, e-learning, e-health, secure interconnections for banking system, money management and data storage, Toader added. Posta Romana, with its 7,000 units countrywide, has already started offering some financial services such as micro credits, cash collection and cash management.

Read More

Austrian “parcel shops” to replace closed post offices

Posted by | Apr 19, 2005 | |

The British Post Office’s international subsidiary GLS is setting up “parcel shops” throughout Austria to replace services of hundreds of closing rural post offices, said GLS spokesmen on Tuesday. Under Austrian Post Office plans, 350 mostly rural post offices were to be closed this year. GLS planned to set up 500 new “parcel shops” by the end of 2006. They would be in banks, shops, or local government offices. GLS-Austria chief Christof Bader said he was hoping for 200,000 packages and a turnover increase of one million euros. Sending the smallest package inside Austria would cost about 3.50 euros. Head of the international GLS, Rico Back, said he did not exclude that in future, the parcel shops would accept ordinary letters as well.

Read More

Portugal Payshop 2004 Profit at 1.0 Mln Euro

Posted by | Apr 18, 2005 | |

Portuguese electronic bill payment services Payshop, a unit of the country’s postal operator CTT-Correios de Portugal posted a profit of 1.0 mln euro (USD1.3) for 2004, it was reported on April 18, 2005. The company ended 2005 with a 5.5 mln euro (USD7.09 mln) turnover, more than doubling it compared to 2003. Payshop currently operates some 2,900 access points in Portugal.

Read More

Venezuela tax agency closes Federal Express, DHL for two days

Posted by | Apr 18, 2005 | |

Venezuela’s tax agency imposed a two-day closure on courier companies including Federal Express and Deutsche Post’s DHL, part of an effort to punish tax law violations, officials said Monday.

The tax agency said in a statement that it temporarily closed six courier companies Monday for allegedly failing to keep their books in order.

Despite the order, the government allowed the companies to process a number of scheduled deliveries to prevent the measure from affecting paying customers, the tax agency said.

Venezuela’s tax agency has aggressively pursued tax evasion and bookkeeping irregularities as part of a “zero evasion” campaign.

The effort consists of fining and forcing the closing of businesses that fall short of their tax responsibilities.

Read More

35,000 postal workers begin 10-day strike in Romania

Posted by | Apr 18, 2005 | |

Some 35,000 postal workers on Monday began a 10-day strike in Romania to demand higher salaries, paralyzing mail delivery and payments of pensions and child benefit.

“We apologize to everyone but please understand that this action is unavoidable,” Mariana Kniesner, a senior union leader at the National Trade Union Bloc told Realitataea TV. “The whole Romanian Postal Service is on strike.”

Postal workers, who earn an average monthly salary of 6.3 million lei (USD225; EUR175), are demanding a pay rise of 16 percent.

Managers say that they cannot afford the raise and point to the fact that spending at the post office is monitored a Romanian government agreement with the International Monetary Fund.

Read More

Rural UK post offices ‘need support’

Posted by | Apr 18, 2005 | |

Post offices in thousands of villages could close over the next few years after Labour failed to give a manifesto commitment to support the loss-making rural network. Colin Baker, the general secretary of the Federation of SubPostmasters, said that he was disappointed at the lack of support after he and other organisations had lobbied for a pledge that rural offices would be protected. Mr Baker said he feared that all 6,000 loss-making rural post offices, of the rural network of 8,000, would close without government cash.
Rural post offices are supported by an annual government payment of Pounds 150 million but that is intended to continue only until the end of 2007. The threat to rural post offices comes after the recent closure of 2,600 urban post offices.

Labour has said: “We have made no commitment for the future of the post offices after 2008 but we are keeping the matter under review.”

Read More

Advertisement

Advertisement

Advertisement

P&P Poll

Loading

What's the future of the postal USO?

Thank you for voting
You have already voted on this poll!
Please select an option!



View ResultsHide Results

Post & Parcel Magazine


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.

Subscribe to the Magazine

 

Pin It on Pinterest