Royal Mail has record Christmas thanks to “extraordinary” delivery staff

ROYAL MAIL shares jumped 5% after it reported a record Christmas that will send annual profits soaring past £500 million and allow it to keep on 10,000  temporary staff.

Management praised the “extraordinary dedication” of postal workers, as they delivered record numbers of parcels, including PPE for medical staff and Covid-19 test kits.

An online shopping boom in lockdown saw it handle 496 million parcels as it took on DHL, Hermes and others.

Chairman Keith Williams admitted that “exceptional volumes” and the high numbers of staff off work due to sickness had “impacted on service quality”, however.

Royal Mail joined the stock market in 2013 in one of the most controversial flotations ever. Even Margaret Thatcher has been against the idea, saying she would not “privatise the Queen’s head”.

The float was attacked for being a boondoggle for investment banks, accused of under-pricing it at 330p. A frenzy saw many thousands of retail punters pile in, and the stock initially rocketed.

It had fallen to 150p by March, but today leapt 22p to 452p, good news for shareholders which include posties.

The last three months were the busiest quarter for parcels in Royal Mail’s 505-year history. The letters business is in long-term decline, but even that arm improved somewhat.

Letter volumes fell 14% in the third quarter, a lower rate of decline than usual.

In the nine months to December, revenue was up 20% to £9.3 billion.

Williams says Royal Mail will keep 10,000 of the 33,000 “flexible workers” hired to deal with the Christmas rush and that “encouraging progress” is being made on service issues.

The Mail delivered 12 million parcels on its busiest day. Profits for the year will top £500 million, up from £325 million last time.