TNT NV, the postal company, said yesterday that people are sending fewer express packages by air in Europe, its most expensive and profitable service.
The Amsterdam-based company said volumes had fallen 10 percent, blaming the economic downturn.
"Based on the volume patterns in the first two weeks of October, TNT expects this pressure to continue in the fourth quarter," the company said in a statement.
It didn't specify how much the decline is likely to hurt earnings.
Shares fell 7.6 percent to 16.40 euros (US$21.94) in Amsterdam.
TNT derives roughly half of its earnings from regular mail and half from express. It said that regular mail business, focused in the Netherlands and Germany, was unchanged. In the express arm, which has operations throughout Europe, ground traffic was also growing less quickly than a year ago. In emerging markets, where it has operations in India, China and Brazil, among others, both growth and margins were steady, the company said.
The company is to report third quarter earnings on October 27.
Analyst Paul Linssen of Petercam said the warning had been expected, but "it seems to be even worse than we anticipated."