Industry News

• Royal Mail, the U.K.-based Company founded in 1516 when it was created by Henry VIII, has been acquired by EP Group

• Royal Mail launched the Penny Black in 1840 - the world’s first adhesive postage stamp

• The Company delivered 7 billion pieces of mail in 2022-23

• U.S. Parcel volumes increased YoY by 0.05% from 21.5 billion in 2022 to 21.7 billion in 2023
  

• U.S. parcel revenue fell 0.03% from $198.4 billion in 2022 to $197.9 billion in 2023
  

• Trend of increased volume with lower revenue highlights an increasingly competitive carrier landscape

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• Carriers are transitioning from one-time seasonal surcharges to more complex pricing systems
  

• Carrier-based solutions that allow businesses to have flexibility are highly advantageous
  

• Regional carriers are gradually becoming a popular and convenient solution to volume and price volatility

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• UPS and FedEx are shifting their surcharge zip codes to encompass larger cities
• As a result, shippers will have to pay a per-package delivery area fee for more of their transactions
• Changes will impact roughly 2.9 million shippers and receivers

• FedEx increased its minimum charge for next-business-morning deliveries (Priority Overnight) by 7.9%
• UPS increased its minimum charge for its next-business-day service by 7.91%
• All General Rate Increases (GRI) exclude increases in surcharges

• 50% of consumers are willing to pay a $9 per-package premium to receive next-day deliveries during peak-season
• 39% of global merchants are planning to begin using shipping insurance this holiday as concerns of package theft rise
• 49 million Americans have had at least one package stolen in the past 12 months

• Peak demand-based delivery surcharges are $7.40 per-package for FedEx Express, excluding all other accessorial fees
• Roughly 1.75 million parcels per day will be subject to residential delivery surcharges
• Fuel surcharges are likely to rise with increasing gas prices

• The cost of home delivery equates to 10% to 15% of an e-commerce brand’s sales
• 62% of e-commerce shoppers won't purchase from a retailer without free-shipping
• FedEx and UPS raised prices in 2023 by an average of 6.9%

• $500 million to $700 million of shippers’ and brokers’ freight payments are going to double brokers annually
• In 4Q 2022, online freight marketplace Truckstop.com said complaints about fraud, including double-brokering, increased 400%
• Freight fraud has impacted the flow of goods to warehouses and in turn delayed shipments to consumers