Stay Up to Date on the Parcel Industry
Unlike freight shipping, which moves goods in large quantities (whole truckloads or shipping containers, for example), parcel shipping moves individual goods essentially one at a time (usually by truck or plane). While both focus on the movement of goods, transportation methods, level of service, and cost can be very different between the two services. Freight is almost exclusively used by commercial shippers, while small- to medium-sized retail shippers usually use parcel freight.
Parcel delivery is a cost-effective, efficient, and fast option for businesses shipping items up to 150 pounds. And, unlike freight shipping, packages are delivered directly to a residential or business address. Check back here for the latest parcel freight industry news.
The Teamsters on Friday said “significant movement” being made with UPS, but that it will not prevent them from continuing to exercise “leverage.”
Ameritrans Express LLC, a contract delivery service for the U.S. Postal Service, has filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy amid claims by some of its contractors that they have not been paid since March.
A heavily competitive marketplace will restrain price increases at UPS, experts say.
Contract rhetoric with UPS has ratcheted up as the Teamsters walk away from the table and issue a new ultimatum.
Without agreement, Teamsters General President Sean M. O’Brien will demand UPS present its last, best and final offer.
The newly approved Ground Advantage product combines three existing Postal Service offerings into one.
The Teamsters union says it will not meet with UPS again unless the company provides a better proposal.
UPS and the Teamsters union have wrapped up noneconomic issues. The hard part, economic issues, lies ahead.
The Teamsters and UPS have reached a tentative agreement on more than 40 noneconomic issues.
Express operations will be in charge of FedEx’s unified Ground and Express network in Canada.
OnTrac said about three-quarters of retailers surveyed plan to invest in two-day delivery over the next two years.
About $2.3 trillion was spent to keep the nation’s logistics system operating in 2022, according to the 34th State of Logistics Report.
UPS Teamsters voted overwhelmingly Friday to authorize its leadership to call a strike if a deal isn’t reached by July 31.
UPS has told the Teamsters union it will install air conditioning and air induction vents in its package cars, union tweets.
GLS will handle the first and middle miles before handing off parcels to local partners.
UPS commits to 50% of Surepost packages being redirected from the Postal Service to UPS by the end of the next contract.
Weak market in 2023 won’t matter when rate hike time rolls around.
The Teamsters’ 340,000 rank-and-file ready a vote to determine if strike should be authorized.
Worldwide Express is the latest and biggest customer of the integrated payments and audit network established by TriumphPay.
A tentative agreement reduces the size of parcels that could be handled by the Postal Service, the Teamsters union confirms.
A slow economy and better carrier sourcing technology put shippers in a good spot, according to Reveel Group’s Josh Dunham.
Pitney Bowes CEO Marc Lautenbach retained his board seat despite the election of four Hestia Capital Management candidates.
The U.S. Postal Service is merging three ground-delivery products to emphasize surface transportation.
Teamsters General President Sean M. O’Brien urges UPS to abolish the 22.4 and the personal vehicle driver classifications.
Comprehensive survey says parcel shippers think status quo isn’t good enough.
Only UPS and Teamster rivals benefit when the bargaining leaves the table and becomes a verbal war, Jindel says.
Amazon also issues higher second-quarter guidance.
A weak U.S. consumer and a continued Asian downturn weigh on UPS. The macro environment is expected to remain challenged, CEO Carol Tomé says.
Parcel giant weighed down by soft US retail sales, continued slowdown in Asia
Amazon drivers and dispatchers in Palmdale, California, have won recognition to join Teamsters Local 396 in Los Angeles.
Despite what may be a lot of available parcels, Amazon may have better things to do with its capital than to chase UPS customers.
There is a lot more competition waiting to take a UPS parcel if workers go on strike, consultant Satish Jindel says.
As negotiations get underway between UPS and the Teamsters, here are key considerations for shippers navigating a period of uncertainty.
FedEx celebrates its golden anniversary of operations with its most intense few years in decades ahead of it.
The Teamsters meet with UPS on Monday in Washington to discuss progress on supplemental agreements as main negotiations begin.
Teamsters General President Sean M. O’Brien charges UPS with foot-dragging; UPS says regional supplements and the national contract are often negotiated at the same time.
A brand change ends lead company LaserShip’s involvement in the name of what is now simply “OnTrac.”
UBS’ Tom Wadewitz says more clarity on cost-cutting actions provides a “long runway” for stock.
Federal Express Corp. will consolidate its air, ground parcel and other units; LTL will operate separately under the brand.
Shekar Natarajan moves on as logistics provider Quiet Platforms looks to improve on a disappointing outlook.
Newly tapped interim CEO Lance Rosenzweig is targeting a four-fold increase in Pitney Bowes’ share price in coming years.
There will be a lot of parcels to deliver if the Teamsters go on strike against UPS, but the Postal Service has proved its mettle before.
Regional parcel carrier GLS looks to build a detailed pricing matrix for short-haul deliveries.
One analyst says there’s no reason for FedEx to be aggressive at this time. Another says the current pricing push is visible but it’s limited.
Carrier revenues hit an all-time high in 2022, according to an annual Pitney Bowes study.
Pitney Bowes maintains it does not look to compete at scale with FedEx and UPS as alleged by Hestia Capital Partners.
The FedEx Ground unit flexed its muscles in the third quarter with strong operating income and cost-reduction prowess.
Volume weakness persists at FedEx, but cost reductions are acting as strong offsets.
The investment firm Hestia is seeking major changes in Pitney Bowes’ global e-commerce strategy.
Well-known shippers like Gap, Williams-Sonoma, Sephora and Nordstrom have returned to the big carriers after stints at regional carriers, a high-level regional source says.
Moody’s says regional parcel delivery company LaserShip is challenged by weak liquidity, high financial leverage and soft market demand.
German giant Deutsche Post DHL posted outsized gains in full-year operating income and said that performance will not repeat in 2023.
FedEx abandons its low-key communication style to get direct with UPS’ customers.
High-powered executive championed a growth strategy for the regional parcel delivery carrier that has since been tempered.
FedEx CEO Raj Subramaniam will advise President Joe Biden on the impact of government trade policies on multiple business sectors and export competitiveness.
Mark Holifield was in the top job at the regional parcel carrier LaserShip/OnTrac for just 17 months after leaving a high-profile supply chain position at The Home Depot.
Company looks to push a more agile air network.
Federal prosecutors allege UPS workers took possession of the drug, and a third worker not employed by the company provided fraudulent mailing labels.
The FedEx Ground unit appears to be looking to work directly with contractors rather than through consultants and brokers.
Shipping costs, not speed, to carry the day in 2023, DHL unit report says.
A new program to grade driver contractors will be introduced across the FedEx Ground network through March 2.
The UPS-Teamsters contract’s so-called 22.4 classification is unpopular with the union because it is seen as an unjustified second-class role for drivers.
U.S. Postal Service is aiming its two- to five-day delivery window at budget-conscious shippers and consumers.
For more than 50 years, a familylike bond has existed between FedEx management and employees. After a round of job cuts unprecedented in scope, that bond rests on shaky ground.
FedEx Office plans to focus on other growth opportunities after retiring its SameDay City service, FedEx Corp. says.
Wednesday’s announcement of high-level cost cuts, along with word of 12,000 job reductions in all, has sent shares soaring and analysts reevaluating opinions of the company.
The announcement is part of a reduction of 12,000 jobs since FedEx’s 2023 fiscal year began.
In a first for the FedEx unit, it will reward or punish driver contractors based on whether they attain gold, silver or bronze grades.
UPS’ CFO warns of a “bumpy road” ahead, while its CEO extends an olive branch of sorts to the Teamsters ahead of contract talks.
BoxC’s data-sharing initiative with the FDA showcases the growing need for government regulators to work with supply chains to fix operational inefficiencies.
Teamsters United said if the Postal Service can respect the King holiday, UPS should as well.
Things get noisy at the union’s two-day meeting to begin reviewing thousands of negotiating proposals.
FedEx Freight Direct now offers returns of big and bulky items.
Capacity investments and slowing online demand helped carriers hit their peak-season delivery targets, according to ShipMatrix.
The carrier will not let peak-season delivery levies fall away in mid-January as it has always done.
About 15% of deliveries scheduled for Friday and Saturday will not make it by Christmas, ShipMatrix says.
FedEx must convince stakeholders that it will stay the course on cost reductions.
FedEx’s 2023 second-quarter results proved its ability to quickly slash costs but also showed the damage a demand slowdown is inflicting on its top line.
The Postal Service said it will double its EV investment from its July forecast.
Each carrier will come in below the other on certain services, but the net effect will be a wash, TransImpact says
Since this isn’t 1997, UPS will stay open because it wants to keep business in a changed world for parcel delivery.
Amazon has shifted middle-mile parcel deliveries to UPS and last-mile deliveries to the U.S. Postal Service, Jindel says.
Consumers can take drop-offs to any of 2,000 FedEx Office locations
The on-time delivery rates for the November shopping holidays were better than in 2021, Ship Matrix said.
The shift from an alliance with the Postal Service to an in-house operation hasn’t gone as well as hoped for FedEx.
The carriers have had their day, and the pendulum appears to be swinging back in the shippers’ direction.
UPS said it will keep its money-back pledge on domestic and international next-day air services.
UPS has raised rates on the last-mile delivery product it operates in concert with the U.S. Postal Service.
The hub outside Philadelphia will support next-day ground deliveries between southern Maine and southern Virginia.
U.S. Postal Service program will add 7 million parcels of peak processing capacity, aggravating the holiday overcapacity problem for carriers.
UPS announces that export and import fuel levies will rise by 150 basis points effective Dec. 5.
The Trade Association for Logistics Professionals said it was not the “appropriate vehicle” to engage in dialogue between FedEx Ground and its delivery contractors.
The furloughs are set to begin in early December, and will be voluntary, the unit says.
FedEx Ground is unlikely to experience large-scale contractor defections during peak season despite dissatisfaction with the level of financial incentives to get them through the cycle.
The U.S. Postal Service plans to freeze rates on Parcel Select Ground and new Connect Local services but will institute a big increase on First Class Package Service.
The U.S. Postal Service posted declines in package-delivery revenue and volume.
German shipping and logistics giant Deutsche Post DHL has raised its full-year profit guidance to a record of $8.38 billion.
FedEx will suspend money-back guarantees on U.S. and air export next-day air shipments for nearly three weeks.
DHL Express’ tariff hike will exceed the increases by FedEx and UPS.
TFI posts strong third-quarter results and boosts its dividend by 30%. But much of the focus is on the work in progress at T-Force Freight.
