Washington, D.C.—The U.S. Postal Service logged a $3.2 billion loss for its second fiscal quarter ended March 31, compared with a loss of $2.2 billion in the year-earlier period.
The Postal Service attributed its continuing losses to declining mail volume, along with legislative requirements to prefund retiree health benefits and seek approval for operational changes. The USPS has lost $6.5 billion for its first six months, compared to a loss of $2.6 billion for the year-earlier period.
The USPS saw a bright spot in its shipping and package service lines of its business, with revenue up 13% year over year to $3.5 billion, and volume up 9%. However, overall mail volume decreased 4.1% to 39.5 billion pieces for the quarter, with a decrease of 1.7 billion pieces, or 4.1%. Operating revenue was about flat year over year, at $16.2 billion.
To help stem its losses, the USPS said Wednesday it would reduce the number of operating hours at those rural post offices it previously had slated for closure. The new plan, affecting more than 13,000 post offices, is expected to save $500 million a year by 2014.
