USPS to Increase Pricing in January

Pricing for shipping services will change on Sunday, Jan. 18, the United States Postal Service announced following a vote by its Board of Governors.

“The move to annual January price changes for shipping services products is consistent with industry-wide practice, and provides a clear picture of the competitive, affordable prices the Postal Service offers,” said Robert Bernstock, president, mailing and shipping services.

Prices will change on Sunday, Jan. 18 for Express Mail, Priority Mail, Parcel Select, Parcel Return Service and some international shipping products. Overall, shipping services prices will increase an average of 5 percent. The new prices are available at www.usps.com/prices (click “New Shipping Prices” box).

“The new prices are very competitive within the shipping industry and reinforce the value Postal Service pricing offers our customers,” Bernstock said. “As always, the Postal Service does not impose fuel surcharges, hidden surcharges or surcharges for residential delivery or Saturday delivery.”

New for 2009 is Commercial Plus pricing. Commercial Plus prices for Express Mail are 14.5 percent less than retail on average, and for Priority Mail seven percent less than retail on average.

“Commercial Plus is a tiered pricing option designed with larger shippers in mind,” said Gary Reblin, vice president, expedited shipping. “It’s a very competitive offering for commercial customers—lower prices that will reward them for shipping higher volumes with the Postal Service.”

Price increases include:

Express Mail – 5.7 percent increase

Priority Mail – 3.9 percent increase

Parcel Select – 5.9 percent increase

Parcel Return Service – 5.3 percent increase

International Shipping Service – 8.5 percent increase

About the Postal Service:

An independent federal agency, the U.S. Postal Service is the only delivery service that visits every address in the nation, 146 million homes and businesses, six days a week. It has 37,000 retail locations and relies on the sale of postage, products, and services to pay for operating expenses, not tax dollars. The Postal Service has annual revenues of $75 billion and delivers nearly half the world’s mail.