Chief Financial Officer Joe Corbett discusses the Postal Service’s latest financial numbers in a new “Dollars and Change” video.
During fiscal 2018’s first quarter (Oct. 1-Dec. 31, 2017), USPS posted total revenue of $19.2 billion and controllable income of $353 million. Controllable income describes net income or net loss that is adjusted for items outside of management’s control.
After deducting all expenses, the Postal Service reported a first-quarter net loss of $540 million.
Corbett explains that several factors contributed to these numbers, including declining First-Class Mail and Marketing Mail volumes and increasing costs of retiree benefits and transportation.
Some negative pressures were offset by an increase in shipping and packages revenue, which rose 9 percent during the quarter compared to the same period a year earlier.
“While we continue to do an excellent job with packages, this part of our business also faces fierce competition, and the growth rate is declining,” Corbett says.
The organization’s long-term financial stability requires three things: legislative reform, more flexible pricing regulation from a Postal Regulatory Commission review, and continued management innovation and efficiency.
Corbett cites recent growth in Informed Delivery, the retirement of outdated mail-processing equipment, and upgrades in mail-sorting and package-sorting equipment as examples of the organization’s efforts to implement its business strategies.