i have just check my account also. found the same story
I couldn't paste the link sorry, but here's why postage is going up. This story is from the Sydney Morning Herald
Abbott government approves sweeping Australia Post changes, price rises
Cabinet has approved a proposal by Communications Minister Malcolm Turnbull to introduce a two-tiered pricing scheme for letter deliveries that is expected to see basic stamp prices increase to $1.
The reforms will allow Australia Post to introduce a "regular" and "priority" letters service. Letters sent with a "regular" stamp will arrive an average of two days later than they do currently, with mail within metropolitan areas arriving a day later than the current timetable.
Australia Post was expected to apply to the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission to increase the cost of a "regular" stamp from 70 cents to $1 when the new regulations come into effect.
Safeguards will be put in place so that prices remain frozen at current levels for concession card holders, including pensioners. And Christmas cards could still be sent with a 65 cent stamp, Australia Post chief executive Ahmed Fahour said at a press conference in Melbourne on Tuesday.
"These reforms mean we will be able to reduce our losses in the letters business and we will be aiming to get it back to break-even," Mr Fahour said.
"The letters business won't make a profit, and that is not our objective. Our objective is to reduce the losses so that we can support five days a week delivery of mail and secure the future of post offices across the country."
Australia Post would keep about 4400 post offices, including 2500 in regional areas, and at least 10,000 post boxes. It currently has 15,805 post boxes.
About 97 per cent of letters sent in Australia were posted by government or businesses. Mr Fahour said there was no correlation between the cost of sending a letter and mail volumes, rather increased online communication affected mail volumes.
Australia Post will be able to charge what it likes for a "priority" stamp, which would see a letter delivered on the current timetable. Regular mail would take four days, allowing Australia Post to save money on air freight. Posties would still deliver mail five days a week.
Priority stamps are expected to cost around $1.50 when they are introduced and prices could rise to $2 in later years.
The reforms are aimed at stemming the bleeding in Australia Post's letters division. Australia Post last week announced a first-half profit of just $98 million - a dive driven by mounting losses of $151 million in its letters business.
A report by the Boston Consulting Group, commissioned by the government, forecast that Australia Post's letters business would lose $12 billion over the next decade. Australia Post management hopes the reforms announced by the government will cut these losses in half to $6 billion.
Mr Fahour also defended his salary of $4.6 million a year - the highest paid public servant in Australia - saying 75 per cent of Australia Post's activity was commercial logistics and it was a "highly successful business". The latest annual report revealed 409 managers and executives at Australia Post were earning more than $195,000 a year.
The new regulations do not require changes to legislation but can be disallowed by the Senate.
I just spent over 2 hours online with live chat dealing with several ebay postage issues in regards to pricing.
My first complaint was indeed about being invoiced for $7.34 on my flat rate e bay satchels when at the time of processing and printing them the system quoted / said $7.15.
Here is the response I received:-
Hi yes, we already received a numebr of reports about this issue and has already been escalated to our management team. Auspost actually had a recent price change starting March 1st and these changes has not yet refelcted in our system.
Our management are already aware about this issue and are already actively reviewing the recent changes on Auspost for it to also reflect on eBay.
The online consultant went on to say that the $7.15 was incorrect and the new charge of $7.34 would in fact stay as it was the correct price.
I did mention to him that I thought perhaps it was illegal to advertise one price and then charge/invoice for me a higher price.(I also politely reminded him that I couldn't charge my buyers more after a sale because ' I forgot that Aus Post were increasing their prices and my original listing did not have the updated pricing on it')
His response was to simply not use the system until it was fixed and go pay a higher price by processing my parcels directly with Australia Post.
He assured me Ebay would not be crediting the difference as $7.34 was indeed the correct price.
At least for me, as I have only had two sales since 1st March, it is a very insignificant amount but some big sellers may well have lost more.
Not a happy Ebayer seller tonight
