The U.S. Postal Service ended its second quarter (Jan 1 - March 31) with a net loss of $1.9 billion as the economic recession and longer-term financial pressures, such as the diversion of letter mail to electronic alternatives, continued to reduce mail volume and revenue. Despite aggressive actions to reduce costs and grow revenue, the Postal Service said it would likely face a cash shortfall of over $1.5 billion at the end of the fiscal year.
The Postal Service has incurred net losses from operations in 10 of the last 11 fiscal quarters. The year-to-date net loss is $2.3 billion, compared to a loss in the same period last year of $35 million. A significant portion of the losses over this period can be attributed to an unprecedented decline in mail volume. In the second quarter, mail volume totaled 43.8 billion pieces, down 7.5 billion pieces, or 14.7 percent, compared to a year ago.
Complete second-quarter results are contained in the Postal Service Form 10-Q report, available online (click Form 10-Q under Quarter Reports).
The U.S. Postal Service ended its second quarter (Jan 1 - March 31) with a net loss of $1.9 billion as the economic recession and longer-term financial pressures, such as the diversion of letter mail to electronic alternatives, continued to reduce mail volume and revenue. Despite aggressive actions to reduce costs and grow revenue, the Postal Service said it would likely face a cash shortfall of over $1.5 billion at the end of the fiscal year.
