In a letter, Vilhjalmur Sigurdsson, Iceland Post’s Head of Philately, says the agency’s philatelic operations, PostPhil, will cease at the end of 2019, after about 90 years in operation.

“Iceland Post currently has severe operating difficulties,” Sigurdsson says in a letter to collectors. The number of philatelic customers has been “decreasing year after year,” and the new CEO of Iceland Post is “cutting down everything that is not profitable in this company, including PostPhil.”

Iceland is scheduled to issue stamps for paintings by Icelandic artists and Christmas stamps on October 31, and that may be it for the country.

“The current management of Iceland Post Ltd., prefers if possible to stop issuing new stamps altogether,” Sigurdsson writes. “If the company must keep on issuing new stamps in 2020 and onward the number of new stamps will be very few each year and there will be no service for stamp collectors.” What stamp production remains may be handled by outside contractors.

Iceland Post announced the layoffs of about 50 employees on August 20th, and Sigurdsson says after October, there will only be three people handling philatelic orders. “I will leave Iceland Post Ltd., in September after 20 years in charge of Postphil.”

The art stamps being issued October 31 are shown below:

• Icelandic Art X – “New Painting“.
• Helgi Þorgils Friðjónsson – Poseidon’s Kingdom, 1988. 50g domestic (195 ISK) Daði
• Guðbjörnsson – Calda, calda, Hot, Hot, 1982. 50g to Europe (250 ISK) Brynhildur Þorgeirsdóttir – Sculpture, 1983. 50g outside Europe (315 ISK)
• Jón Axel Björnsson – Untitled, 1983. 2000g domestic (720 ISK)

[press release]
Australia Post proposes 10 cent stamp price increase to support the sustainability of community post

Australia Post has lodged a draft notification with the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC) seeking an increase in the Basic Postage Rate (BPR) from $1 to $1.10 to apply from January 2020, the first increase in four years.

This proposed increase, along with efficiency savings across the operational network, reflects a balanced approach to ensuring a sustainable community post service. The proposed increase would cost the average household, which regularly sends letters, less than $1.50 per year.

It will help keep Post Offices open – including Australia Post’s vital regional and rural network – keep posties delivering five days a week and ensure Australians everywhere can continue to access these important services.

Group Chief Executive Officer and Managing Director Christine Holgate said importantly the 60 cent price of concession stamps would be protected and available to 5.7 million Australians, including pensioners and veterans, and the 65 cent seasonal greeting card stamps will stay the same.

“In the last financial year, we delivered a profit in-line with that three years earlier. We did this with 820 million less letters delivered to over 700,000 more homes,” Ms Holgate said.

“Our posties deliver to more than 12.1 million addresses across the country. It doesn’t matter if they have one letter or 100 for the address, they still need to drive past the letterbox each day.

“Last year our letters business lost $190 million – this is after the benefit of significant efficiency savings. It is important that we responsibly address pricing if we are to protect this important service and keep our network of community post offices open.”

Business and government customers, who send around 97 per cent of all mail in Australia, will continue to receive incentives to encourage them to use mail as part of their communication strategy. Charities will also continue to receive significant discounts off the BPR.

Since the last BPR increase in January 2016, the General Retail Industry Award has risen by 13 per cent, as well as many of Australia Post’s other costs.

[For U.S. readers, $1.10 Australian dollars is about 74¢ U.S. —VSC]

[press release]
Canada Post proposes new postage rates for 2020 – Price of a domestic stamp would rise to 92 cents

OTTAWA, June 14, 2019 /CNW/ – Canada Post is proposing to increase postage rates in 2020 by two cents for a domestic Lettermail item of 30 grams or less. For stamps purchased in a booklet, coil or pane, the rate would become $0.92 per stamp, up from the current rate of $0.90. Buying a single domestic stamp for the same item would cost $1.07, up from the current rate of $1.05. These rate changes would take effect on January 13, 2020.

While usage varies, the estimated impact of the rate increases on the average Canadian household would be well under a dollar a year, and the total increase for small businesses that use stamps would be estimated at about $6 a year. Canadians can avoid the increase by purchasing Permanent stamps at the current rate in advance, if the changes are approved for next January.

Canada Post is also proposing to increase rates for other domestic Lettermail, U.S. and international Letter-post items and domestic Registered Mail. The rate proposals will be published for public comment in Part I of the Canada Gazette on June 15, 2019.

from the USPS Postal Bulletin May 9, 2019:
Save Vanishing Species Semipostal Stamps Withdrawn From Sale — Statutory Authority Expired December 31, 2018

Effective close-of-business December 31, 2018, all Post Offices, stations, branches, and contract postal units were to withdraw from sale the Save Vanishing Species semipostal stamp stock (Item 576600). These items are to be retained at the unit level until further notice. Do not prepare these items for destruction at this time.

Absolutely no sales of the Save Vanishing Species semipostal stamps and products are permitted at retail counters and outlets. The items are also withdrawn from sale at Stamp Fulfillment Services and The Postal Store at usps.com/shop.

[press release]
Australia’s busiest online shopping week no longer in December

Australians are fast adopting international shopping traditions with Black Friday and Cyber Monday combining to form the busiest online shopping week in the country, according to the latest research by Australia Post.

The Inside Australian Online Shopping preview found that the two significant shopping events recorded growth of 28.7 per cent year-on-year – indicating shoppers are ticking off their Christmas lists earlier than ever before.

The research also showed that our love for online bargain hunting remains strong, with growth of around 24 per cent year-on-year across all major shopping events in Australia.

General Manager Parcel & Express Services, Ben Franzi, said the research shows a continuing shift in the timing and channels shoppers use to make their key purchases.

“Traditionally, the first week of December was the peak for online sales. Now, it’s Black Friday and Cyber Monday – which strongly suggests that more Aussies are doing their Christmas shopping online and earlier than ever before.”

“Importantly, this signals to retailers they need to consider timing their sales earlier to grab a slice of the Black Friday and Cyber Monday pie.

“Australians are getting savvier with how they shop, and are starting to purchase seasonal items that they might usually buy instore. For example, in the second week of December we saw a marked increase in online purchasing of specialty food and liquor – resulting in a growth of 41 per cent year-on-year.

“We know that customers are increasingly drawn to the convenience and stress-free experience of online shopping – Paypal reports that 70[i] per cent of Australians find online shopping less stressful than going in-store,” said Mr Franzi.

Key data, year-on-year:

Significant online shopping events:

• May Mayhem: up 25.1 per cent
• EOFYS: up 30 per cent
• Click Frenzy: up 13.5 per cent
• Black Friday/Cyber Monday: up 28.7 per cent
• Boxing Day: up 24 per cent

Popular pre-Christmas categories:

• Black Friday/Cyber Monday: Cosmetics at 54 per cent
• Second week of December:
  • Specialty Food & Liquor: 41 per cent
  • Variety stores: 56 per cent

Mary-Anne Penner, the head of Stamp Services for the U.S. Postal Service, has retired. Penner had said she would be retiring, with the exact date depending on her husband’s health and completion of their retirement home. The rumor that she had retired or had given notice had been kicking around for a week before Linn’s Stamp News confirmed it.

Penner has held the post since 2015. Her retirement was effective January 31.

One of her predecessors, Dave Failor, once told The Virtual Stamp Club that many at USPS headquarters consider being head of Stamp Services to be “the best job in the Postal Service.”

Although she headed the program when the USPS issued heat-sensitive stamps (Total Solar Eclipse, 2017), scratch-and-sniff stamps (Frozen Treats, also 2017) and a lenticular souvenir sheet (Art of Magic, 2018), another major accomplishment as director of Stamp Services may have been instituting greater control of stamp production quantities. Fewer stamps were printed, resulting in fewer stamps destroyed when an issue had run its course.

She has been replaced on an acting basis by William Gicker, who has been the creative director and manager of stamp development; that is, the unit that suggests ideas, obtains rights, and designs the stamps. Gicker has been the art director for several issues, including this year’s Alabama Statehood and Frogs stamps.

Linn’s also first reported that Terri L Basinger has been appointed manager of Stamp Fulfillment Services, the operation in Kansas City that distributes and sells stamp and products and also cancels first day covers. FDC collectors may recall that she was once the supervisor of Cancellation Services, and spoke at Americover 2010, the annual show and convention of the American First Day Cover Society. “She is a longtime friend of first day cover collectors and servicers,” said the organization’s liaison with the USPS, Foster Miller in The Stamp Collecting Forum.

As of January 27, 2019:

The domestic Priority Mail Retail Flat Rate price changes are:

Here’s a summary of first-class rates:
One major change is in “First-Class Package Service—Retail,” which the USPS calls “a lightweight expedited offering used primarily by businesses for fulfillment purposes.” It includes tracking, at about half the cost of Priority Mail. However, it is not easy to produce a table for this service, because the rate now ranges from $3.66 to $4.06 for up to four ounces, depending on distance. The service includes tracking.

To determine a domestic zone, use this tool on the USPS website. Choose the second tab, “Get Zone for ZIP Code Pair.”

Thank you to VSC member Foster E. Miller III for his help on this article.

From the USPS:

Effective January 27, 2019, the following low denomination coils in the 10k format will also be available in the 3k format:

• 2-cent Meyer Lemons stamp 3k coil (Item 750000).
• 3-cent Strawberries stamp 3k coil (Item 750100).
• 5-cent Grapes stamp 3k coil (Item 750200).
• 10-cent Pears stamp 3k coil (Item 750300).

[press release]
Price of a domestic stamp rises to 90 cents from 85 cents on January 14 in the first postage rate increase since 2014

OTTAWA, Jan. 4, 2019 /CNW/ – Postage rates rise on January 14, with the price for stamps purchased in a booklet, coil or pane for domestic LettermailTM items weighing 30 grams or less increasing to $0.90, up from $0.85. The price of a single domestic stamp will increase to $1.05, up from $1.00.

While usage varies, Canada Post estimates the impact of the price increases to be less than a dollar a year for the average Canadian household and about $14 a year for the typical small business. Prices will also increase for mail to the U.S. and international destinations, and for domestic Registered MailTM.

The increases are the first for letter mail since March 31, 2014. Canadians can avoid the increases by purchasing PermanentTM stamps at the current rate before the new rates take effect. Under the federal regulatory process, Canada Post publicly proposed the increases in the Canada Gazette Part I in June of 2018.

A U.S. Treasury Department task force, ordered by President Trump, is proposing an overhaul to the U.S. Postal Service, including (and perhaps in particular) how it prices packages delivered by e-commerce companies like Amazon.

The task force says the USPS should price mailing these packages “with profitability in mind.”

The president has, in turn, criticized Amazon for treating the USPS as its “delivery boy.”

Keep in mind that Amazon is owned by Jeff Bezos, who now also owns the Washington Post. That newspaper is often critical of President Trump. However, the administration denies it is targeting Amazon.

The report does not call for privatizing the Postal Service.

Politico’s story can be found here. The New York Times has the Associated Press story as well as its own, titled “Trump Said Amazon Was Scamming the Post Office. His Administration Disagrees.”  CNN characterizes it as “White House backs off privatizing the Postal Service.” FoxNews.com apparently did not run the story.

Here is the Treasury Department’s press release:

Washington – The U.S. Department of the Treasury today released the Task Force report on the United States Postal System. The report, United States Postal System: A Sustainable Path Forward, provides a series of recommendations to overhaul the United States Postal Service’s (USPS) business model in order to return it to sustainability without shifting additional costs to taxpayers.

“The USPS is on an unsustainable financial path which poses significant financial risk to American taxpayers,” said Treasury Secretary Steven T. Mnuchin. “President Trump tasked us with conducting a thorough evaluation of the USPS, and today’s report contains achievable recommendations that fulfill the President’s goal of placing the USPS on a path to sustainability, while protecting taxpayers from undue financial burdens and providing them with necessary mail services.”

Between fiscal year (FY) 2007 and FY 2018, the USPS experienced net losses totaling $69 billion. The USPS is forecast to lose tens of billions of dollars over the next decade. The USPS’s business model—including its governance, product pricing, cost allocation, and labor practices—must be updated in light of its current operating realities.

On April 12, 2018, President Trump issued the Executive Order on the Task Force on the United States Postal System. The Executive Order established a Task Force on the United States Postal System, chaired by the Secretary of the Treasury and including the Director of the Office of Management and Budget and the Director of the Office of Personnel Management. The Task Force was directed to evaluate the operations and finances of the USPS and to develop recommendations for administrative and legislative reforms that will enable the USPS to create a sustainable business model.

The Task Force’s recommendations include, but are not limited to:

• Improving governance by strengthening the Board of Governors and developing enforcement mechanisms to ensure financial commitments and reforms are met;
• Clearly defining the Universal Service Obligation by specifying what are “essential postal services,” or types of mail and packages for which a strong social or macroeconomic rationale exists for government protection;
• Developing a new pricing model that removes price caps and charges market-based prices for both mail and package items that are not deemed “essential postal services”;
• Modernizing the USPS’s cost standards and cost allocation methodology;
• Pursuing cost-cutting strategies that will enable it to meet the changing realities of its business model;
• Reforming USPS employee compensation in a manner consistent with proposed reforms to the broader federal workforce;
• Restructuring retiree health benefit liabilities with a new actuarial calculation that is based on employees at or near retirement age;
• Exploring new services that will allow the USPS to exact value from its existing assets and business lines, but that present no balance sheet risk.

The Task Force’s full analysis and complete list of recommendations can be found in the full report.