Correios' losses soar in the first half of the year and exceed the entire year of 2024

The Post Office recorded a loss of R$4.3 billion in the first half of 2025, according to a balance sheet released by the company last Friday (5). The amount exceeds the entire accumulated deficit in 2024, which had been R$2.6 billion , already considered four times worse than that of 2023, when the deficit was R$633 million.

Between April and June, the state-owned company recorded losses of R$2.6 billion, almost five times greater than in the same period last year, when the loss was R$553.1 million. In the first quarter, the numbers already indicated difficulties, with losses of R$1.7 billion, the worst start to a year since 2017.

According to the company, the poor performance mainly reflects the impact of the salary adjustment for more than 55,000 employees, the increase in expenses with court-ordered debts, and the drop in international orders following the implementation of the so-called "blouse tax," which imposes a 20% tax on purchases up to US$50 and a 60% tax on higher amounts.

"Correios faces financial constraints, as evidenced in its Financial Statements, resulting from external factors that directly impacted revenue generation. Among the main reasons is the significant contraction in the international segment, due to significant regulatory changes in the purchase of imported products, which caused a drop in mail volume and increased competition, resulting in a reduction in revenues linked to this segment," the state-owned company noted in its balance sheet ( see the full report ).

Between January and June 2024, international shipping generated R$2.1 billion, but this year revenue plummeted to R$815 million, a drop of almost 62%. At the same time, administrative expenses soared 74% compared to last year, reaching R$3.4 billion through June, pressured by personnel costs and court-ordered debts.

In the released document, the state-owned company reinforced that it is working on a recovery plan. The strategy includes measures to reduce expenses, diversify services, and commercial partnerships to increase revenue.

"Management is implementing a series of strategic actions aimed at economic and financial rebalancing, focusing on increasing revenue, reducing expenses, and optimizing the service network. Strengthening strategic partnerships expands access to new revenue sources, while streamlining measures ensure greater efficiency in the use of resources," the company said.

The plan was launched in May and includes, among other actions, a Voluntary Severance Program (VDP) to reduce personnel costs. The plan is expected to save up to R$1.5 billion with employee participation.

Senate Oversight

The postal crisis also reached the Senate and was the target of an investigation by the Oversight Committee last week. Senator Damares Alves' (Republicans-DF) proposal, reported by Flávio Bolsonaro (PL-RJ), was approved in about 30 seconds, with no dissenting votes, but provoked a backlash from the government's base.

The investigation will be conducted jointly with the Federal Court of Auditors (TCU) and is expected to uncover possible accounting irregularities, reckless management, and fraud at the Brazilian Postal Service. Meanwhile, the state-owned company is racing against time to reverse its billion-dollar deficits and regain financial sustainability.