Is the reform of the US postal service not only slowing down but also raising prices?
What's going on? Is the reform of the US postal service not only slowing down but also raising prices? With the continuous increase in e-commerce package volume, the United States Postal Service plans to reduce package delivery time, alleviate pressure, improve service quality, and reduce costs. From January to March this year, the total number of packages sent by the United States Postal Service increased by 25% to 1.86 billion, contributing 33% of the revenue growth. Among them, the largest increase in one type of package was 49.7%, exceeding 500 million pieces.
According to Baiyun.com, according to its new ten-year strategy, the United States Postal Service plans to change the delivery time for non emergency and light parcel services (FCPS) to meet the 95% delivery rate requirement. Under current requirements, 80% of FCPS can generally be delivered within 3 days, while 20% can be delivered within 2 days. In the future, about 32% of FCPS will take 4-5 days to arrive, 44% will maintain 3-day delivery, and the proportion of delivery within 2 days will slightly increase to 23%.
In order to meet market demand, the United States Postal Service plans to launch a new package service called "USPS Connect", connecting customers from small and large businesses, urban and rural areas, and particularly expanding core package products such as Priority Mail, Priority Mail Express, Category 1 package services, and Parcel Select products, providing a more diverse range of same day, next day, two-day, and even two to three day delivery services. Analysis suggests that these new services can strengthen the competitive advantage of the United States Postal Service over United Parcel Service and FedEx in the B2C sector. In addition, the United States Postal Service will also launch a return service for e-commerce shopping.
Regarding the US Postal Service's speed reduction plan for a certain type of package, the US News website cited a report from Reuters on June 21, stating that the attorneys general of 20 states in the United States have requested the US Postal Regulatory Commission to reject the plan as it may affect the ability of local governments to fulfill their basic functions. The plan previously proposed by the United States Postal Service to increase postage prices by 7% has also been opposed by groups such as retailers, newspaper companies, printing companies, and greeting card production companies.