Tag: Europe

Poste Italiane valued at 14-15 Billion Euros

Posted by | Nov 28, 2007 | |

Italy’s postal service Poste Italiane has been valued by investment banks at between 14 billion to 15 billion euros (USD 20.62- USD 22.09 billion) and is ready for a public offering as soon as the government decides to launch it, its CEO said. State-owned Poste Italiane, one of Italy’s largest non-publicly traded companies, has boosted profitability and revenue in recent years by expanding outside the mail business into more lucrative segments such as financial services. Poste Italiane has been considered among the assets Italy’s centre-left government could sell to lower public debt. Sarmi has previously said he prefers a two-phase listing similar to that of Germany’s Deutsche Post, where the whole group went public first before its banking unit was listed.

An IPO of Poste Italiane could be launched at anytime, but there was little to suggest it was imminent, he said. “Up to now, I do not see at the horizon line anything special that is moving,” he said. “It’s a political issue. In terms of technical aspects, I think we’re ready – profitability, all the functionalities, (reporting) under accounting standards. All that’s needed for becoming public are ready.” A couple of investment banks had valued the company at between 14 billion to 15 billion euros, he said. Prime Minister Romano Prodi’s government is in the midst of trying to privatize national airline Alitalia and has also said it will sell part of ship builder Fincantieri to the public.

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Post Office (UK) supports world aids day with launch of limited edition phone card

Posted by | Nov 28, 2007 | |

The Post Office is proud to be supporting World AIDS Day on 1 December with the launch of a limited edition red ribbon phone card. 50 per cent of the profits from the sale of the card will be donated to the National AIDS Trust.

The theme of this year’s World AIDS Day is ‘Let’s Get Talking’ and it is estimated that on 1 December, people will talk for over 800 hours on the Post Office’s® International Phone Cards.

The Post Office wants to offer customers the option of cheap and easy calls abroad but also give them the opportunity to show their support for those affected by HIV and AIDS. The Post Office is hoping this partnership will help to break the silence about HIV and AIDS in the UK and across the globe.

Nick Gittens, Post Office head of corporate responsibility, said: “By offering these services, we are making it easy for our customers to do their bit for World AIDS Day. By simply choosing the unique GBP 15 international phone card in the weeks running up to World AIDS Day, our customers will have contributed to the National AIDS Trust and shown their support for the millions affected by HIV and AIDS.”

As well as benefitting from low cost calls to destinations across the globe, on World AIDS Day customer will be able to call China, Hong Kong, Japan and Singapore for free between 12noon and 12midnight. And on 2nd December, customers will be able to call Poland and South Africa for an unlimited time for only 15p.

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Austrian Post eyes Romania, Bulgaria, Bosnia

Posted by | Nov 28, 2007 | |

Austrian postal operator Oesterreichische Post wants to buy into Romania, Bulgaria and Bosnia in the coming 15 months, said the company’s Chief Financial Officer Rudolf Jettmar.

“We want to set up a network in the fragmented south-eastern European market,” Jettmar told journalists late on Tuesday on the margins of an investment conference in New York. “We want to fill in our blank spots in Bosnia, Bulgaria and Romania.”

Jettmar said the postal operator was aiming to take over private operators working in parcel delivery or distribution of advertising.

In the first three quarters of the year, Oesterreichische Post has spent 210 million euros (USD 312 million) on takeovers, and the company has another 150 million euros left in its war chest, said Jettmar.

Oesterreichische Post is already present in Slovakia, Croatia, Hungary and Serbia.

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NetDespatch Soars Towards Christmas Internet Shopping Peak

Posted by | Nov 27, 2007 | |

NetDespatch is seeing a massive seasonal uplift to its business as more and more people buy Christmas gifts online or through catalogues. In November alone, the delivery of over 8 million parcels will be managed online by the NetDespatch Velocity web-based platform, and with the scanning of parcels throughout the delivery process, the company’s secure web servers are processing an average of 100,000 transactions an hour.

TNT Post has utilised NetDespatch’s Velocity platform to create an end-to-end, wholly web- based solution to control its innovative packet and parcel home delivery services. The company is able to provide unparalled customer and supplier integration, with enterprise-wide visibility of data from customer despatch right through to courier delivery. TNT Post is also able to utilise the platform to offer a leading-edge customer returns solution.

Other carriers such as APC Overnight and Amtrak are increasingly providing home delivery services through the Velocity platform. This allows customers to book and track on line, whether an occasional shipper paying by credit card or a major customer requiring integration with their sales order processing or warehouse system. The NetDespatch systems integration, advanced bar code labelling and address checking services ensure that home delivery shopping order details are only entered once, are held securely on a central server, are automatically booked with the chosen parcel carrier, and are correctly labelled ready for collection from any location.

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UK postal workers back peace deal

Posted by | Nov 27, 2007 | |

Postal workers have overwhelmingly backed a deal on pay and conditions finally ending their long-running dispute.
The Communication Workers Union (CWU) said its members voted by 64% in favour of an agreement and will now receive a pay rise of 6.9% over two years.
Turnout in the ballot was also 64%. The union said it would now be at the heart of implementing changes to working practices in the Royal Mail, one of the issues at the centre of the bitter dispute.
Postal workers across the country were involved in a long-running campaign of industrial action since the summer, including a number of strikes, which crippled mail deliveries.
Dave Ward, the union’s deputy general secretary, said: “Rather than accept market rate strategy for pay, this deal sets the benchmark for the whole of the postal industry to follow.
“The CWU has always recognised that change is needed in the Royal Mail and this agreement demonstrates that the union is leading the change agenda.
“The strong acceptance of this deal by postal workers shows that they also recognise that change is needed in the business.”

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