Post office near default? Losses mount to $5.1B
The Associated Press November 15, 2011 6:50PM
Patrick Donahoe
Updated: December 17, 2011 8:23AM
WASHINGTON — The U.S. Postal Service says it lost $5.1 billion last year as a weak economy and increased Internet use drove down mail volume.
The bleak financial report for the fiscal year ending Sept. 30 was not as high as the $10 billion in losses previously estimated. But that’s because an annual payment of $5.5 billion the post office owed the federal government has been deferred to a later date.
Postal officials called the financial situation “dire.”
They say the Postal Service will not be able to make the $5.5 billion payment due this Friday due to low cash flow.
Postmaster General Patrick Donahoe has warned of a postal shutdown next year unless there is congressional action to address the agency’s long-term money problems.
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