Financial result 

Strong balance sheet thanks to fitting strategy

In 2022, Swiss Post generated Group profit of 295 million francs and an operating profit (EBIT) of 358 million francs. The result is down on the previous year, which was particularly strong, but it continues to strengthen Swiss Post’s balance sheet. Operating income stood at 6,859 million francs. Swiss Post’s current strategy is working: the company is in a sound position and ready for a very challenging 2023.

At 358 million francs, Swiss Post’s operating profit (EBIT) is 157 million francs down on the previous year’s figure. Group profit for 2022 is 295 million francs, a decline of 157 million francs compared to 2021. Operating income stands at 6,859 million francs, down 18 million francs year-on-year. With the war in Ukraine in particular, the year 2022 brought a number of unexpected factors into play that had a strong impact on Swiss Post. Additional costs due to record-high inflation, lower income as a result of the turnaround in interest rates and declining letter and parcel volumes weighed on Swiss Post’s business. At the same time, however, a positive free cash flow was also generated in 2022, and this flows into Swiss Post’s balance sheet and increases its liquidity.

Pressure in parcel market

The highest contribution to the financial result was made by Logistics Services and PostFinance. In the logistics business, Swiss Post generated operating profit of 358 million francs last year. This means that the Logistics Services unit saw a decline of 107 million francs year-on-year Persistently high inflation, increased fuel and energy costs and higher procurement costs led to significantly higher costs in this unit last year.

Both parcel and letter volumes each fell by around 4 percent compared to the previous year. The decline in parcel volumes is a consequence, among other factors, of highly volatile consumer confidence and global supply shortages. Over the last 10 years, letter volumes have declined by about one third overall. This trend continued – as expected – in the 2022 financial year. While the price adjustments introduced by Swiss Post in 2022 had a stabilizing effect on the result, they could not compensate financially for the decline in letter volumes.

Despite the decline in volumes in 2022, the long-term trend towards online retail continues unabated. Compared to 2019, Swiss Post carried 30 percent more parcels last year.

Interest rate environment weighs on PostFinance result

PostFinance generated operating profit of 229 million francs, down 43 million francs year-on-year. This was mainly due to a drop of 45 million francs in net interest income. The discontinuation of negative interest rates had a far stronger impact than the higher income from financial investments, which will only accrue over time. Nevertheless, PostFinance expanded its position as an investment bank in 2022, with the e-asset management volume exceeding the 1 billion franc mark for the first time. As a result of the Swiss National Bank’s (SNB) historic decision to return to positive policy rates, PostFinance cancelled its customer asset fees for private and business customers with effect from 1 October and can again pay interest rates on savings and retirement savings accounts 3a. The interest rate turnaround also offers the potential for greater profitability in the future.

Several new partners in network

At –71 million francs, the operating result at PostalNetwork remained stable in 2022 (EBIT 2021: –68 million francs). The decline in traditional over-the-counter transactions at Swiss Post branches continued last year, particularly in payment transactions, with PostalNetwork recording a decline of around 15 percent year-on-year. The losses were largely offset by the unit through consistent efficiency improvements. Swiss Post is developing its branches into regional service centers with partners, with products and services relevant to everyday life. Last year, Swiss Post entered into strategic partnerships with SwissCaution, Assura, Sympany, Migros Bank and Cornèr Bank. However, these are not yet reflected in the result.

Normalization in mobility sector

At 27 million francs in 2022, the result generated by the Mobility Services unit (PostBus and Post Company Cars) is 9 million francs higher year-on-year. At PostBus, demand continued to recover after the coronavirus crisis and reached its pre-pandemic level at year-end, leading to an increase in income from ticket sales. At the same time, however, costs also rose, for example due to inflation, producing a balanced result at PostBus in franchised transport, overall. The result at Post Company Cars is slightly better than expected, mainly due to a higher result in third-party business with fleet management for business customers.

Communication Services under development

At Communication Services, the most recently created unit, operating profit stood at –72 million francs. Compared to the previous year, this result represents an improvement of 8 million francs. The unit remains under development. Thanks to the acquisitions made, operating income stood at around 73 million francs, which represents an increase of 35 million francs (2021: 38 million francs).

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