Reflecting on our FY25 results and the road ahead

Today we announced our FY25 results, and I want to share some of our highlights from the past year and the ongoing challenges we are facing. This year, we delivered a record $9.45 billion in revenue, however this translated into a modest pre-tax profit of $18.8 million, due to the continued decline in letter volumes and Post Office foot traffic and increasing costs. While these headwinds are not new to us, over the past 12 months we’ve seen a sharp increase in competitive pressure in our Parcels business, most notably from large, multinational eCommerce platforms, and a number of newer start-up delivery providers.

I want to sincerely thank every team member for their hard work and contribution throughout the year, all of which has enabled us to achieve this result. When I reflect on the past 12 months, I’m proud of our team members who have continued to delight our customers and communities, support each other and create a sustainable future.

While we are doing everything in our control to simplify and transform the business through our Post26 strategy, we are facing an increasing number of challenges. These are the same challenges faced by many, if not all, postal operators. The United States, Canada, France, Spain, and the United Kingdom are recent examples of postal operators experiencing significant losses, change of ownership, or receiving billion-dollar government-funded bailouts to survive. This is not a path we want to take.

Our Parcels business achieved solid growth, with volumes up 4.3% despite fierce competition. We invested $371.9 million in new facilities, fleet, and technology to improve speed, efficiency and customer experience. We also achieved a major sustainability milestone this past year – 100% renewable electricity across all our operational sites and we continued our decarbonisation journey with the addition of 563 new electric delivery vehicles.

However, our addressed letter volumes are at the same level last seen in the late 1930s. Excluding federal, state and local election activities, letter volumes fell 11.7% in FY25 and despite recent BPR increases, the Letters service recorded a $230.4 million loss. This is why modernisation is not optional – it’s essential.

We’ve passed the tipping point and while Australia Post, and in particular our Post Office network, will always play an important part in the community, we are primarily a Parcels business that also provides a loss-making Letters service. The challenges we are facing are real and on our doorstep. If we don’t face into them, we are at risk of becoming a drain on the taxpayer.

We’ve got a unique opportunity to take a different path. We’re modernising, simplifying, and investing in our future to stay relevant, self-funded and sustainable.

Thank you again for your dedication and resilience – you’ve helped Australia Post achieve so much over the past year. Please take a moment to celebrate our success and see the impact you’ve had on our customers, communities and each other.

Be safe, be kind.

Paul