International parcels drop by 32% after EU imposes surcharge

The number of parcels sent from outside the EU dropped by one-third in the last three months, mainly as a result of tighter EU restrictions, postal service PostNL said in its latest quarterly report.

The company said the 32% drop mainly reflected a drop in packages being sent from Asia after the bloc imposed a €3 surcharge per product on July 1.

It follows a 15% dip in the second quarter of the year and PostNL expects the trend to continue after the import fees are raised by a further €2 from next month.

The impact was partly offset by a 40% increase in parcels within the EU compared to the third quarter last year as Asian websites lost trade to European rivals because of result of the new measures.

But PostNL said that growth was “more than wiped out” by the drop in deliveries from further afield.

Three-day deliveries

The company’s turnover increased in the third quarter by €6 million to €768 million after the government relaxed the rules on deliveries.

Since July PostNL has been required to deliver letters within two days rather than 24 hours and the deadline is due to be stretched to three days next July.

CEO Pim Berendsen said the move to three-day deliveries was an important  “interim step” towards ensuring the postal service could survive in the long term, but also renewed his calls for the government to compensate the company’s losses in recent years.

“Until we have a future-proofed regulatory framework, the uncertainty for thousands of our postal workers, customers and consumers will continue,” he said. “This situation requires a structural solution.”