Tag: Europe

Deutsche Post may call off Postbank sale

Posted by | Sep 2, 2008 | |

Deutsche Post AG may decide to call off a sale of Deutsche Postbank AG at a supervisory board meeting on Sept. 12, Handelsblatt reported, without saying where it got the information.

A previously targeted price for the Bonn-based bank of 10 billion euros (USD 14.6 billion) is now unrealistic, according to the German business newspaper. Deutsche Post has become more skeptical about a sale because of the drop in the valuation of banks, it added.

Bonn-based Deutsche Post, Europe’s biggest mail carrier, owns 50 percent plus one share of Postbank, which has a market value of about 7.3 billion euros.

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FedEx Express to deliver broadest next-business-day service from Europe to the Eastern United States

Posted by | Sep 2, 2008 | |

FedEx Express has upgraded its next-business-day delivery service FedEx International Priority from Europe to major U.S. East Coast cities. Customers who had two-business-day service can now reach more than 3,500 zip codes in key markets along the U.S. East Coast overnight. Customers already enjoying next-business-day delivery service to this region benefit from later pick-up times of up to six hours.

To support the service upgrade, FedEx will launch a new westbound trans-Atlantic flight and fly a wide-body MD-11 freighter daily, Tuesday through Friday, between Paris, Charles de Gaulle Airport and Newark, N.J. The Europe-to-U.S. flight segment comprises part of the FedEx westbound ‘around-the-world’ flight, which enables FedEx to provide customers with access to key markets around the world with highly competitive transit times. The company will also introduce two new Airbus A310 flights, including flights originating from Barcelona and Budapest-Vienna, to offer customers in these areas later pick-up times for enhanced next-business-day service to the U.S.

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Royal Mail privatisation likely (UK)

Posted by | Sep 1, 2008 | |

The Communication Workers Union says that Royal Mail should be a public service first and a business second, is not keen on the idea of privatisation and has accused the government of allowing the service to be run down to push through privatisation plans. The postal regulator, Postcomm, denies this, saying that it has been a greater than expected take-up of electronic communications such as email that has eroded Royal Mail’s business and that without private capital, Royal Mail’s future is grim. Adam Crozier, Chief Executive at Royal Mail, said that Royal Mail was not against the idea of partnerships that would introduce private capital.

It is unclear in what form private investment would be, but it would require a splitting up of Royal Mail to encourage investors, with Parcelforce probably the most lucrative part of Royal Mail. Postcomm is keen to see an arrangement that would provide a sustainable source of funding for the USO rather than leaving the country to pick up the cost.

The EU says that each country can effectively make its own arrangements for the USO providing it complies with EU rules. If Royal Mail were privatised but the pension deficit offloaded to the entire country as well as the funding for the USO, deregulation would be a complete disaster, so Postcomm will be keen to see that any investment will underpin the USO.

In all probability, large chunks of Royal Mail’s business will be privatised over the next ten years and with no one really certain as to just how low the decline in mail business is likely to drop, private capital is unlikely to be worth as much to Royal Mail as it is now. A report into the state of the UK’s postal service expected in October will almost certainly underline the urgency of a sell-off.

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DX Group acquires the In-night and PX worldwide licensing operations of Business Direct (UK)

Posted by | Sep 1, 2008 | |

DX Group Ltd announced its acquisition of the trade and assets of the following operations from Business Direct Limited and Business Direct Group plc:

In-Night – a national infrastructure to provide secure parcel logistics, primarily supporting field based engineers, through:
– The Parcel Exchange (“PX”) – a nationwide “virtual depot” network of over 4,000 fully automated intelligent drop boxes
– In-Boot – collection and deliveries direct to a field engineer’s vehicle
– PUDO – Pick Up Drop Off, the collection and return of spare parts via manned third party locations

PX Worldwide Licensing – the licensing of the PX technology to interested parties.

For DX, the acquisition of these operations represents the opportunity to:
– become a leading player in the adjacent service management market
– develop the services available to In-Night customers from the integration of aspects of the these operations with existing DX operations
– use the secure PX network to extend the services we offer to existing DX Group customers
– market the PX concept internationally via licensing arrangements
– develop the emerging potential for extending the PX concept to service the rapidly expanding B2C market

Terms of the acquisition have not been disclosed.

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GeoPost sells Chronopost subsidiary Taxicolis to Flash Europe International

Posted by | Sep 1, 2008 | |

GeoPost has announced the sale of Taxicolis, a Chronopost subsidiary, to express operator Flash Europe International. This sale is part of GeoPost’s strategy to focus on its core competence of express parcel delivery.

Taxicolis, which employs around 250 people, specialises in personal delivery of express shipments as well as high-value health and breakable products within France. In 2007, it recorded total revenues of EUR 66 million.

Flash Europe International, present in 10 countries, has been providing express transport services, especially for the industry sectors such as automotive, health and banking and IT services, for about 25 years.

The new group is positioning itself as a European leader for urgent transportation with revenues of EUR 110 million, 320 employees in 10 different countries and operating capacity in 80 countries worldwide.

The acquisition would give Taxicolis a unique opportunity to establish itself on the European market in the sectors of healthcare and public services, La Poste said in a statement.

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