Category: Industry News

Continuing efforts to fight what he says are unfair trade practices, the administration of President Donald Trump announced the U.S. will pull out of the Universal Postal Union (UPU) treaty. The treaty, agreed to in 1874, sets fees for international shipping of mail and small parcels (under 4.4 pounds) around the world. Since 1969, the treaty has assigned lower shipping rates to developing countries, including China, in an effort to boost their competitiveness globally.

UPS spokesperson Kara Ross sent FreightWaves this statement on behalf of David Abney, chairman & CEO of UPS. “UPS believes the administration took the right step in addressing the inequities of the UPU system of terminal dues. Foreign postal operators should not be given government approved advantages in what is a competitive market. All parties should pay the same parcel delivery rates for the same services from the U.S. Postal Service, regardless of whether the country of origin is foreign or domestic.”

Unmanned aircraft can help with package deliveries, yard and depot surveillance, traffic management, and more. How are drones being used and tested today, and what does it mean for delivery drivers?

While testing remains in the early stages, this past summer the company received a patent for product-distribution warehouses that float in the sky and are carried and held aloft by blimps. It is part of Amazon’s plan to move toward more drone deliveries from ground-based shipments.

The floating warehouses, or aerial fulfillment centers (AFCs), “may be positioned at an altitude above a metropolitan area and be designed to maintain an inventory of items that may be purchased by a user and delivered to the user by a UAV that is deployed from the AFC,” the patent document said.

Elsewhere, UPS in early 2017 made a successful delivery by drone in partnership with Workhorse, an Ohio manufacturer of the unmanned aircraft as well as electric and hybrid electric vans and pickups.

On Oct 11, U.S. Postal Service (USPS) proposed a price increase for its parcel select service. The proposed price hikes will be going into effect in January 2019 if approved by the Postal Regulatory Service. USPS’ parcel select service is used by Amazon.com, Inc. (AMZN – Free Report) and the likes of FedEx Corporation (FDX – Free Report) and United Parcel Service, Inc., the last and unarguably the most expensive step in the shipping process.

In fact, President Donald Trump has had earlier criticized the e-commerce giant by saying that the USPS is losing billions of dollars every year by charging Amazon and others too little to deliver their packages.