Norway Post increased its operating revenues by 4% to NOK 6,997 million (€890.8 million) in thefirst quarter of 2008 due to acquisitions and growth in the Logistics and IT segments. The overall
Q1 performance was, however, negatively impacted by the mail segment and the Easter effect thisyear.Group earnings before non-recurring items came to NOK 74 million (€9.4 million), down fromNOK 219 million in the first quarter of 2007. Revenues from operations outside Norway grew by 19.2%during the quarter and now provide around 25 % of the group’s total revenues.
The mail revenues fell slightly by 0.6% to NOK 3,234 million (€411.7 million) primarily dueto the decreased volumes of addressed letter products and the early Easter effect as Easter fell inMarch this year and not in April like in 2007.
The logistics operating revenues rose by 4.8% to NOK 3,115 million (€ 396.6 million) in thefirst quarter. The division achieved earnings of NOK 115 million (€ 14.6 million), up from NOK 109million in the corresponding period last year mainly due to acquisitions and a large increase involumes. The division started to install 40 parcel delivery machines in Norway and Sweden in thefirst quarter expecting to improve the Group’s position in the online shopping and post ordersegment in the Nordic region.
“Our foreign operations and the Logistics and IT segments produced good results and thesecompensated for some of the poorer results from the Mail Division. This shows that we must continueto achieve Nordic growth, and that this is crucial for Norway Post’s ability to offer competitivepostal and logistics services in the future,” said Norway Post CEO Dag Mejdell.
The Group is experiencing increased competition in all its business areas which is also dueto the merger of Sweden Post and Post Denmark to a large Nordic postal and logistics groupannounced on 1 April this year. “This merger will lead to increased competition. This means that weat Norway Post have to continue to improve our efficiency and cut costs so we can offer competitiveproducts,” Mejdell continued.
One of the most important means of improving cost effectiveness and ensuring high maildelivery quality is the new high-tech letter centre at Robsrud outside Oslo which is currentlyunder construction and is expected to be finished in 2009, Norway Post said. “We are alsoimplementing a Group programme to improve the efficiency of production processes and reduce thegroup’s cost level,” Mejdell added.
