Emirates Post's daily mail volumes break all-time summer record with 1.11 million pieces handled on a single day

The highest summertime volumes were recorded on July 17, 2004, with Emirates Post handling a total of 1,112,458 pieces. The record lettermail, half of which was contributed by the postage prepaid segment, has been attributed to the rising stature of the UAE as a business hub and as one of the fastest growing countries in the world.

The all-time high volumes also reflect the overall upbeat mail scenario at Emirates Post during 2004. Daily lettermail volumes were on the rise from the start of the year itself. On January 13, 2004, the daily mail uptake was 734,737 pieces. On February 4, it was as high as 1.09 million, before reaching the all-time high peak on July 17, representing the highest daily letter letter-mail volumes outside the Christmas rush period (which usually sees all-time high volumes each year globally).

"The unprecedented mail turnover at Emirates Post is the result of our progressive and dynamic policies and the success of the government in raising the international profile of the UAE," said Mr. Salem Obaid Al Shaya, Assistant Director General, Operations, Emirates Post. "Globally, there has been bad news for postal corporations in recent years because of a sharp drop in lettermail volumes, but Emirates Post has reversed the trend. This demonstrates that our strategy of upgrading standards of services through adoption of new technology has been successful, and we have been able to achieve dramatic results despite competition from private operators and challenges from electronic mail."

"Summer used to be a relatively less busy period for Emirates Post. But in recent years, there has been a big rise in both incoming and outgoing mail," said Mr. Abdullah Juma Kalandar, Director Exchange Centres, Emirates Post. "The summer of 2004 has broken all records at Emirates Post and mail volumes on some days more than doubled when compared to the past few years. It is a proud moment for Emirates Post and reflects the success of the dynamic policies adopted by the corporation."

The lettermail includes both local and international registered as well as ordinary mail and letters mailed within the country to be distributed locally. Almost half the volumes were contributed by the Postage Prepaid service which is usually used by business organizations. The postage prepaid volumes for the month of July 2004 were 5.21 million pieces, against 3.95 million pieces in July 2003. Direct mail also contributed substantially to the overall volumes.