Is EBay Feeling The Effects Of A Potential Canada Post Strike?

EBay (NASDAQ:EBAY) has recently gone on the offensive and has urged its users to petition the Government of Canada to intervene in the case of a postal strike. For those not up to speed, Canada Post and its union, the Canadian Union of Postal Workers have been in ongoing negotiations since 2015. Recently however, the union has given its members multiple strike mandates only to rescind them as negotiations re-started or entered mediation. Given that Canada Post is Canada's top package delivery service and both Fed Ex and UPS use Canada Post for their rural services a strike could have a significant impact on those who rely on their services. At the moment, there is significant uncertainty as to if and when a strike will take place.

SELLERS AND BUYERS IMPACTED

As a result of this uncertainty, eBay.ca has created an entire section on their website dedicated to a potential strike. Canada is one of eBay's more established markets so any disruption in postal service north of the border could have ramifications for eBay's bottom line. Base on some of the FAQs that eBay has posted, it is clear that they are worried about the impact on both Sellers and Buyers. EBay has urged is sellers not to put their listings on hold, end their listings or put their business on vacation. The uncertainty must have created some anxiety amongst sellers who would be unable or would need to find alternative, and often more expensive ways, to ship their products to consumers. Likewise, eBay has urged buyers to continue to purchase items and to be prepared for a potential delay in shipping times.

Unfortunately, eBay does not release sale or volume figures by country so it is impossible to predict what kind of financial impact it may have. They refer to the Canadian market as one that is "mature" which in my mind implies they have a substantial foothold in the marketplace. I don't believe they would be pushing Canadians to petition the government if they were not being financially impacted.

IS TIMING OF RELEASE A SIGN?

Given the effort eBay has put into its marketing and after going to press with their petition, I do believe that eBay is starting to see the effects of a potential strike on their Canadian volumes. It is not hard to see why. As a seller on eBay myself, I have in fact ended my listings as I did not want the hassle of attempting to find another carrier to deliver my products. I am sure I am not the only one and likewise, I am sure there are buyers out there who are holding off purchasing items until the contract dispute is resolved. Some of these buyers may even decide to purchase the item elsewhere. While all of this remains pure speculation, I do not believe that the press release urging users to petition the government is a coincidence. What are your thoughts? Please leave your comments below.

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