Pricing increases on parcel delivery helped the U.S. Postal Service in Q1, as parcel volume declined 3.5% to 70 million pieces, while parcel revenue gained 2.4% to $8.84 billion. Overall revenue increased 1% to $21.5 billion, with a net loss of $1.03 billion, an improvement over $1.55 billion a year earlier.
UPS reported fourth-quarter revenue that fell short of expectations but earnings ahead of the consensus, while the outlook for 2023 appears challenged and the company is in margin protection mode against falling volumes and other volatility. And CEO Carol Tome optimistically predicted a “win, win, win” outcome with the Teamsters.
FedEx Ground plans to cut back Sunday delivery from 80% U.S. coverage to 50% starting in March, as it faces lower volume and the high cost of service on a light day. The company initially cut back Ground service on Sunday to 50% coverage from 95% in August, citing a focus on “improving efficiency and reducing costs,”
The three major parcel carriers had a decent peak holiday season in terms of on-time performance, with service levels comparable to 2019, according to ShipMatrix, not surprising as volumes were lighter even though holiday sales increased, as many shoppers returned to stores. FedEx saw a significant improvement over its 2021 showing.
Amazon, facing a continued slowdown in its ecommerce business and under pressure to boost flagging sales, is looking to sell excess capacity on its commercial cargo jetliners used to move goods among its network of warehouses here and in Europe. Meanwhile, both Amazon and Walmart announced multi-state drone delivery.
The U.S. Postal Service today announced a major upgrade to its planned rollout of electric vehicles to replace its aging delivery fleet, saying the USPS will purchase only EVs after 2026, as the agency bows to significant pressure from Washington and the states to expand and speed up its changeover.
