The Managing Director of Royal Mail’s letters division has left the group unexpectedly after just 13 months in the job.
Ian Griffiths, who was previously group managing director of GKN Automotive, joined the postal operator in February and was a member of the board.
Read MoreBusiness Post Group plc today issues the following close period trading update for the twelve months ended 31 March 2007.
At interim results in November 2006 Business Post Group said that it expected a much improved second half.
The company reported that this has been achieved and expect to report revenue growth of around 18% in the second half year giving revenue growth for the full year of around 17% – primarily driven by the continued strong performance of UK Mail.
The exit from the FedEx Corporation contract is progressing satisfactorily. As announced on 6 February 2007, an exceptional cost of some GBP 1m will be incurred in the current financial year relating to contract exit costs. This will be offset by an exceptional gain of GBP 1m from a recent property disposal.
Good progress is being made in creating the platform from which the group’s strategy – to develop Business Post into the UK’s leading independent integrated postal group – can be achieved.
As a result of the above, the Board anticipates that the results for the year to 31 March 2007 will be in line with its previous expectations.
Preliminary results for the year ended 31 March 2007 will be announced on 23 May 2007.
Read MoreLeading Turkish freight forwarder, Ulustrans and European logistics specialist, Christian Salvesen, have announced a strategic alliance which will combine the respective strengths of the two companies to meet customers’ requirements for transportation between Turkey and the rest of Europe.
Christian Salvesen PLC will be able to offer Turkish freight forwarding services to its customers as part of its distribution and logistics services via Ulustrans’ freight capability.
Ulustrans will utilise Christian Salvesen’s extensive networks in Europe to facilitate distribution services for its customers. This alliance enables Christian Salvesen and Ulustrans to meet their customers’ needs by providing an integrated transport capability between Turkey and the rest of Europe.
Christian Salvesen CEO, Stewart Oades, said: “This strategic alliance increases our transport network capability into an important market, enabling Christian Salvesen to provide customers with transport services between Turkey and Europe. Turkey was identified as an important country in our plans and this represents a significant increase in our capability. We look forward to working with Ulustrans, the leading Turkish provider in the market.”
Ulustrans CEO, Olgun Hacialoglu, added: “We are keen to expand our freight offering to and from Turkey. Christian Salvesen is the right partner to enable us to do this and will provide the strong European distribution services which our customers require.”
Read MoreRoyal Mail’s plans to charge more for bulk business mail in rural areas were condemned by politicians yesterday.
The Universal Service Obligation requires the Post Office to deliver mail at the same price regardless of where you live in the UK. But now Royal Mail insists that no other country in the EU is opening its postal markets to competition in the same way as Britain. It says that its commercial rivals in the UK would handle around 2.5 billion letters this year, well ahead of expectations and equivalent to 25% of bulk business mail.
Royal Mail is seeking permission for a new zonal system of pricing which would allow it to charge more for bulk business mail in rural areas. Danny Alexander, LibDem MP for Inverness, Nairn, Badenoch and Strathspey, said: “If permission is given for this proposal to go ahead, then businesses and consumers in the Highlands will pay the price. Local businesses will pay more and it may well be that some firms will try to extra charges will be passed on to Highland consumers too.”
Dave Thompson, SNP candidate for Ross, Skye and Inverness West, said the USO was an important safeguard for rural areas.
Royal Mail Group PLC’s unit General Logistics Systems (GLS), formerly German Parcel, is planning to expand into the Spanish market through acquisitions and has about 250 mln Eur to spend, chief executive Rico Back told newspaper Die Welt.
‘We are in takeover talks in Spain and are planning to complete those in the coming two months,’ he said.
The company plans to further expand its operations into Romania and the Baltic states, the report added.
GLS is currently the third-largest parcel service in Europe.
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