Earnings fall at Royal Mail

PROFITS at Royal Mail have fallen by almost a third to £162 million, its lowest figure for five years.

The letters business recorded a loss of £3m after a sharp decline in mail volumes, as well as the impact of competition.

The overall price-controlled area of Royal Mail's business lost around £200m, though revenues increased over the year by 2.3 per cent to £9.4 billion, thanks to the parcels business.

The figures also showed the post office network is losing around £500,000 a day.