Tag: Royal Mail

UK Royal Mail refuses to comment on US talks

Posted by | May 22, 2006 | |

Royal Mail yesterday described a report that it is in talks with the US companies Fedex Corporation and UPS over an alliance with its pan-European parcels business General Logistics Systems as “speculation” and declined further comment. The Sunday Times reported Royal Mail was in talks with the two US companies over what it described as a ground-breaking European alliance. It said chairman Allan Leighton was still undecided which of the two companies to choose but was keen to use GLS to break into the postal markets in France and Germany.

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UK Royal Mail seeks alliance with American parcel giant

Posted by | May 21, 2006 | |

Two of the world’s biggest postal groups, Fedex Corporation and UPS, are in advanced negotiations to set up a groundbreaking European strategic alliance with Royal Mail. Allan Leighton, chairman of Royal Mail, is still deciding which of the two potential American-owned partners to pick but it is thought he is close to creating a new company that could transform the financial prospects of the British mail group. Leighton did not reveal the talks with the two US postal giants — Fedex, which is capitalised at USD33 billion (GBP17.5 billion), and UPS, worth USD52 billion. He wants the European operations of Fedex or UPS to team up with Royal Mail’s General Logistics Systems. GLS runs a pan-European parcels business and is Royal Mail’s most profitable operation.

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Axe hangs over 2,000 rural UK post offices in fresh drive to cut costs

Posted by | May 19, 2006 | |

Thousands of rural post offices are threatened with closure over the next five years as the Royal Mail transforms the network. The Government is providing the Royal Mail with Pounds 1.3 billion for a “radical transformation”, and Adam Crozier, its chief executive, said that the current situation -where a thousand post offices have fewer than six customers a day – was “not sustainable”. He said: “It’s clear that it can’t continue the way it is. The status quo is not possible.” More than 6,000 of the 8,000 rural post offices are understood to be losing money. The whole network, which has 14,500 branches, loses Pounds 2 million a week. Mr Crozier has said that he can meet his legal obligations with a network of just 4,000 offices.

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Time to address Royal Mail privatisation – Government moves are sticking plaster, not surgery

Posted by | May 19, 2006 | |

Financial Times comment: Royal Mail is an elephant taking part in a dog show. It is much larger than its rivals but is the wrong sort of animal to compete successfully. Political cowardice over many years and across the party divide has resulted in a sorry mess. Even if the annual results show the organisation improving, nothing will fundamentally change as long as Royal Mail stays in the public sector.

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Government to put brakes on Royal Mail staff shares

Posted by | May 19, 2006 | |

Royal Mail’s plans to hand its 200,000 workers a stake in the business are to be pushed into the legislative long grass, with ministers unlikely to make any changes in the postal operator’s ownership structure for at least two years.
Alistair Darling, trade and industry secretary, plans to decide soon on whether to support in principle contentious proposals by Allan Leighton, Royal Mail chairman, for an employee share ownership scheme. However, both he and chancellor Gordon Brown are mindful that the issue is politically charged within the Labour party and could involve the use of public funds. They are considering whether the scheme would be appropriate for the management of Royal Mail. But with affordability a central issue, and the government juggling a busy domestic agenda, a bill introducing any changes is unlikely before 2008, say Whitehall insiders.

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