Postal charges to rise further from May 4

The prices of Posti’s letter services paid in cash will change on May 4, 2018, said a press release issued by the national parcel and logistic delivery services Posti.

However, stamps having no value indicator published before the date will be accepted as payment without additional stamps.

As of May 4, the postal charge for a domestic card or letter weighing no more than 50 grams will be EUR 1.50, which is 10 cents higher than the current charge.

The charge for a priority class international card or letter weighing no more than 20 grams will be EUR 1.60.

The international Maxi letter classes have been combined and their Economy delivery speed will be discontinued. The charge for a Maxi letter will be increased to EUR 8.50.

“Prices must be revised to ensure that the postage fees are at a level that can sustain the functionality of the universal service throughout the country and cover the costs of the delivery network. It is important to keep in mind that Posti’s operations are not funded by tax revenue. Posti is enhancing its operations in many ways to cut costs, but the processing of universal service letters is more expensive due to the manual work involved,” explained Laura Luoma from Posti’s consumer services.

Another reason for the increased unit costs of picking, sorting and delivery of letters is the reduction in delivery volumes, said a Posti press release.

In 2017, the volume of addressed letters decreased by as much as 10 per cent from that in the previous year. According to the release, the fewer items there are to deliver, the higher the delivery costs of an individual letter.