UPS announced on Thursday that it will increase rates and surcharges by an average of 4.9%, to address the impact of higher costs. Air Freight rates within and between the U.S., Canada and Puerto Rico will increase by an average 5.2%.
Freight rate hikes will take effect from Oct. 26 and by Nov. 2, the company will also increase surcharges for Over Maximum Packages. The tables for Ground, Air and International fuel surcharges will be updated as well. Starting January 4, 2016, the company will begin charging for its Third-Party Billing Service.
Looking forward, UPS says in 2016 it will reach more customers earlier by expanding its Next Day Air Early service to nearly 4,500 more zip codes. It will offer international expansions, convenience and control to customers and an enhanced supply chain portfolio as well.
The company has already extended its Worldwide Express service to over 41,000 new zip codes around the world. It has also expanded its Access Point Network and predicts that by the end of this year it will have more than 8,000 UPS Access Point locations in select U.S. cities and 22,000 across the globe. In August, UPS acquired Coyote Logistics, which added large-scale truckload brokerage options to its list of services.