Post Office Revenues Climb Though Volume Drops

Feb. 11, 2008
First Quarter Fiscal 2008 for the US Postal Service (USPS) which ended on December 31, 2007, showed that total revenue was up 3.5% year over year with

First Quarter Fiscal 2008 for the US Postal Service (USPS) which ended on December 31, 2007, showed that total revenue was up 3.5% year over year with net income of $672 million on revenues of $20.4 billion. Total volumes were down 3% in the period with First-Class showing a decline of 3.9%.

“The economic downturn was the main factor for the volume decline,” observed John Porter, Postmaster General, “as the hard-hit financial and housing sectors are heavy users of the mail. I’m proud our managers and employees adjusted quickly to these changing market conditions, making a positive quarterly net income possible. Not only did they help us tighten our belt, but they provided record levels of service.”

Potter’s reference to improved service was that national on-time performance scores for delivery of First-Class Mail hit all-time first-quarter highs in two of the three categories USPS tracks. “National overnight was service at 96% on-time—a first for three quarters in a row,” says the USPS. “Two-day service was 93% on-time. Three-day performance was 88%, a two-point improvement over the same period last year.”