Singapore Post reported a 55.2 percent increase in operating profit for the first quarter ended June 30, reaching $4.1 million, compared with $2.6 million in the same period last year. The company attributed the growth primarily to effective cost management, reductions in labor-related expenses, and operational efficiencies.

Despite the rise in operating profit, revenue for the quarter declined slightly by 0.9 percent to $93.4 million, down from $94.2 million a year earlier. Gains in the post-office network and property asset segments helped offset weaker results in logistics and letters services. Within the logistics and letters category, domestic parcel volume rose 36.5 percent year on year to 7.1 million items, compensating for a 16.2 percent drop in domestic mail volume to 67.3 million items. The decline in mail volume was partially cushioned by a postage rate increase implemented in January.

Operating expenses decreased by 2.4 percent to $89.3 million from $91.5 million in the previous year’s quarter. The company noted that rising fuel costs, driven by an oil price surge during the quarter, were managed through initiatives such as route optimization, fleet electrification, and electricity cost hedging.

In its property division, SingPost reported a slight increase in leasing revenue, primarily from rental income at SingPost Centre, which achieved full occupancy at the end of June, up from 97.8 percent a year earlier. The company has also engaged an architect to explore a potential refresh for the SingPost Centre asset.

SingPost’s liquidity position strengthened over the quarter, with cash and cash equivalents rising to $664.4 million as of June 30, up from $603.8 million at the end of March. This increase was supported by a $52.8 million cash inflow from the sale of 10 Housing Board post-office shops. The group maintained a net cash position of $314.7 million, with borrowings remaining stable at $349.7 million. Total equity rose to $1.48 billion from $1.43 billion as of March 31.

SingPost shares closed unchanged at 34.4 Singapore cents on August 27.