WASHINGTON – The US Postal Service on Tuesday reported a net loss of $6.5 billion for the 12 months ended Sept. 30 and said it will not break even next year as first-class mail fell to its lowest volume since 1968.
The Postal Service said revenue fell 0.4% to $78.2 billion in revenue.
US Postmaster General Louis DeJoy said the losses included $2.6 billion in inflationary costs “exceeding what we projected and what we were able to recover… We are not happy with this decision.”
The agency has aggressively raised stamp prices and is in the midst of a 10-year restructuring plan announced in 2021 that aims to wipe out a projected loss of $160 billion over the next decade and has forecast 2023 as a break-even year.
“Despite significant planned reductions in our operating costs and growth in our package revenue, we will not break even in 2024,” DeJoy said, noting the USPS has reduced its projected $160 billion loss in 2021 “to less than $60 billion ,” DeJoy said.
The USPS is in the midst of a 10-year restructuring process. Getty Images
The volume of first-class mail fell 6.1% in 2023 to 46 million pieces and was down 53% since 2006, but revenue increased by $515 million due to higher stamp prices.
Net loss was also affected by taking into account underfunded retirements caused by actuarial revaluations and changes in discount rates.
USPS, which has 640,000 employees reported a 2.6% increase in workers’ compensation and benefits costs to $52.8 billion.
USPS plans to cut $1 billion in transportation costs next year.
Total operating expenses were $85.4 billion for the year, an increase of $5.8 billion, or 7.3%.
USPS said to maintain liquidity it is not making full payments of $5.1 billion in pension plans due.
In April 2022, US President Joe Biden signed into law a law providing approximately $50 billion in financial assistance to the USPS over a decade.
Last month, the USPS said it was seeking approval to raise the price of first-class stamps to 68 cents from 66 cents effective Jan. 21.
The price of the stamp has risen 32% in the past four years since early 2019 when it was 50 cents.
First-class mail, which most people use to send letters and pay bills, is the class of mail that generates the highest revenue, accounting for $24.5 billion, or 31% of USPS 2023 revenue.
Report by David Shepardson; Editing by Chris Reese and Aurora Ellis
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Source: thtrangdai.edu.vn/en/
