Australia Post wants to raise stamp prices

Australia Post is planning to lift stamp prices by 15 cents per letter from the middle of the year to offset losses.

The postal service announced today it was seeking approval from the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC) to increase the basic postage rate from $1.70 to $1.85.

The price of concession stamps and seasonal greeting cards won't change, remaining at 60 cents and 65 cents respectively.

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Australia Post says it has also offered further cost-of-living relief by increasing the number of concession stamps eligible customers can purchase, from 50 to 75 per year.

Fewer than 3 per cent of letters are sent by individuals, with the vast majority mailed by businesses and government agencies.

The average cost impact to Australian households of the proposed price rise to $1.85 will be less than $1 extra per year.

Australia Post's letters service has steeply declined and is now at levels recorded in the 1930s.

In the past financial year, volumes dropped a further 11.7 per cent (excluding election activities).

Even with the contribution of elections, the letters service still reported a $230.4 million loss.

Australia Post group chief executive officer Paul Graham says despite the slump in demand for letters, the corporation was still delivering them to more addresses.

"As letter volumes continue to fall as customers increasingly take up digital options, Australia Post needs to ensure the Letters service remains sustainable now and into the future," he said.

"The proposed increase is one of the ways we are responsibly addressing our financial challenges so we can keep serving our customers and communities."

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