(Reuters) – International Distribution Services (IDS), the owner of Britain’s Royal Mail, reported an 8.2% rise in revenue for the first quarter of fiscal 2025 on Thursday, supported by strong parcel demand and more postal votes during the UK elections.
IDS, which agreed to a 3.57-billion-pound ($4.63 billion) takeover by Czech billionaire Daniel Kretinsky in late May, maintained its outlook for Royal Mail’s return to profit this fiscal year.
Royal Mail, whose iconic red post boxes with the Royal Crest dot the country, is clawing back market share after struggling with labour strikes, competition and higher costs. It has called on regulator Ofcom to speed up reforms to the universal postal service.
The company’s group revenue rose to 3.26 billion pounds, while sales at GLS, its international parcels network, climbed 4.8% and grew 10.6% for Royal Mail.
“Whilst we are making good progress on our transformation in Royal Mail, we can’t do it all on our own and we urgently need to see regulatory reform of the Universal Service,” CEO Martin Seidenberg said in a statement.
(Reporting by Yadarisa Shabong in Bengaluru; Editing by Sherry Jacob-Phillips)
