DHL 2010 Annual Report Download - page 68

 e global market volume for outbound international mail was approximately
 . billion in . Our business environment in the reporting year was shaped by
lingering economic weakness and tougher competition. However, we braved this dif-
 cult market and managed to win back market share. We expect our market share for
 to be . .
REVENUE AND EARNINGS PERFORMANCE
Revenue slightly below prior year
As at  July , we transferred signi cant parts of Williams Lea Germany from the
  division to the  division. We now report on those parts as the new
Value-Added Services business unit.  e previous year’s segment reporting  gures were
adjusted accordingly.
Revenue in , which had . additional working days, was  , million and
therefore slightly below the prior year’s  gure of  , million. Since  July , we
have been required to apply value added tax  to revenues generated with business
customers. In order to retain this important customer group, we increased our gradu-
ated discount scale. Revenue in the second half of the year su ered as a result. Positive
currency e ects were   million for full-year .
Offsetting  impacts mail business
Annual revenue in the Mail Communication business unit fell from  , mil-
lion to  , million.  e decline primarily re ects the fact that we increased our dis-
counts for business customers when the  requirement went into force. We retained
and regained quality-conscious customers; however, some of our more price-sensitive
customers turned to competitors.
In the regulated mail sector, we kept prices stable as dictated by the price-cap
procedure. According to a comparative study that we conducted, our postage rates still
rank amongst the lowest in Europe.  e survey accounted for both the nominal price for
sending a standard letter ( g) by the fastest method and key macroeconomic factors
such as purchasing power and labour costs.
Revenue and volume of advertising mail ends on slight upwards note
Our customers’ advertising expenditure was slightly up again at the end of the year.
However, their overall advertising budgets remained limited in the reporting year. It is
above all the mail-order companies that invest less in paper-based advertising and more
in online advertising to win new customers. Besides, the year  saw an increase in
election materials posted in the run-up to Germany’s parliamentary elections. All in all,
volumes declined for both addressed and unaddressed advertising mail in the reporting
year. Revenue fell .  from  , million in  to  , million in .
Earnings, page 
Glossary, page 
. Mail Communication: volumes
mail items (millions)
2009 2010 + / –  Q 4 2009 Q 4 2010 + / – 
Business customer letters 6,663 6,566 –1.5 1,732 1,742 0.6
Private customer letters 1,292 1,260 –2.5 386 378 –2.1
Total 7,955 7,826 –1.6 2,118 2,120 0.1
Deutsche Post DHL Annual Report 
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