TNT Post is to change its name to Post NL following the separation of TNT Express from the companyat the end of May. TNT Express has meanwhile revised down its business outlook for 2011 after a
volatile start to the year.The Dutch postal operator, which will retain its distinctive orange colours and continueusing the ‘Royal’ designation, will focus in future on the mail, parcel and e-commerce markets inthe Netherlands, Belgium, Germany, the UK and Italy. The new corporate identity will be introducedfrom May 31 onwards, with the fleet, staff clothing, postal outlets and other company resources tobe rebranded in stages.
CEO Harry Koorstra said: “Our new name PostNL symbolises the reliability and down to earthapproach of our company. This name does justice to our past, something we are very proud of. By thesame token we emphasise that we are a true Dutch company, with ambitions that go beyond mail andoperations that reach beyond our borders. Our three-sided logo symbolises the heart of our company,with mail, parcels and e-commerce at the core.”
Explaining Post NL’s future strategy, he said: “The choice of mail, parcels and e-commerce isa logical one given our activities. Consumers are increasingly ordering goods online, with theresult that we are witnessing a drastic increase in our parcel delivery business, national andinternational. Mail, in the form of direct marketing and door-to-door advertising, is a key link inthe e-commerce chain.
“We are also increasingly directing our efforts towards supporting e-commerce, by offeringready to use webshops, for example, and by taking on the entire logistics chain for onlineretailers. We are helped along by our reputation as a reliable company, and by the fact that wehave the largest network of outlets in the Netherlands. We see our company as an essential linkbetween the physical and the online world. We have plenty of opportunity to develop this furtherand to grow along with it.”
The company also welcomed the Dutch Parliament’s approval yesterday of the new TariffRegulation, which lays down the scope for the future tariff development of the Universal ServiceObligation. The new Regulation sets the reasonable rate of return at 10 per cent Return on Salesfollowed by a price cap system based on CPI.
PostNL, with some 77,000 employees and turnover of nearly €4.3 billion in 2010, processes 8.8billion addressed postal items (including 100 million parcels) each day and delivers to more than88 million addresses in the Benelux, Germany, the UK and Italy.
Parent company TNT NV (the future Post NL NV) also announced more details about theforthcoming demerger of TNT Express. The documentation and prospectus for the transaction will bepublished next week. On May 3 a Capital Markets Day will be held for TNT Express followed byCapital Markets Day for PostNL on May 9. The demerger will be voted on at an Extraordinary GeneralMeeting of Shareholders (EGM) immediately after the AGM on May 25.
Assuming the split is approved, TNT Express shares will be traded on the NYSE EuronextAmsterdam as per May 26. Their price will be fixed after the exchange closes on May 25. TNT NVshareholders will receive one TNT Express NV share for each TNT NV share that they hold. Post NLwill retain a 29.9 per cent stake in TNT Express as a financial shareholding to cover equity andfunding requirements.
TNT also issued a business update for the Express business ahead of the AGM and demerger.Year-to-date trading conditions for TNT Express have been much more volatile than had beenpreviously assumed due to a sharp increase in the oil price, social and political unrest andnatural disasters. This was exacerbated by unforeseen effects from the integration issues inBrazil, the company said. The total underlying operating income for the first 12 weeks is around€25 million lower than last year.To improve results in the remainder of 2011, Express management istaking commercial and operational measures in each region, including specific pricing actions andthe reduction of indirect costs, TNT said.
The European activities are performing at satisfactory levels. However, the oil priceincrease has led to lower International Express volumes with related under-utilisation of the airnetwork as well as a lag in the recovery of higher fuel costs, TNT stated. In the Americas, Brazilsuffered from unexpected and recent domestic volume losses related to integration issues. A newmanagement team has been put in place and has been given specific turnaround targets. Asia Pacific(Aspac) has seen much lower Asia-Europe volumes, with a recovery only in the last two weeks ofMarch, while floods and strikes in Australia have also held back the region’s operating result.
TNT Express has now revised its 2011 forecasts and expects modest revenue growth in EMEA andan underlying operating margin in line with last year (9 per cent or slightly above). There shouldbe a partial recovery in Aspac due to improving intercontinental volumes, while “a full range ofcorrective measures” are being taken in the Americas. For the medium term, Express now aims forEMEA revenue growth and a 10-11 per cent operating margin, along with double-digit revenue growthand a “solid” profits contribution from Asia-Pacific and the Americas.
