U.s. Postal Service, Quarterly Earnings | featured news

The U.S. Postal Service lost $1.3 billion in the October to December quarter, an official said on Friday, days after the beleaguered mail agency announced plans to cut back on Saturday delivery to save money.

The U.S. Postal Service's net loss widened to $5.2 billion during the April through June period, and the cash-strapped agency warned on Thursday that without help from the U.S. Congress it will face low cash and be unable to borrow money this fall.

The U.S. Postal Service on Thursday reported a $3.2 billion loss for the first quarter of 2012, $1 billion more than during the same period last year.

The U.S. Postal Service posted a net loss of $3.1 billion in its third quarter and warned again it would default on payments to the federal government if Congress did not step in.

The agency predicts a cash shortfall for 2011 after net losses in 14 of the last 16 fiscal quarters. The U.S. Postal Service reported a quarterly net loss of $3.5 billion Thursday and said it will likely have a cash shortfall going into 2011.