German postal service group Deutsche Post said Wednesday it had been able to increase its Q2 operating profit by a staggering 40 percent year-on-year to 752 million euros ($842 million).

"Our Post, eCommerce and Parcel division in particular contributed to the positive trend," Chief Executive Frank Appel commented.

Deutsche Post saw its bottom-line earnings leap by 66 percent over the second quarter in 2016.

Postbus a good riddance?

Group revenues decreased, though, between April and June to 14.2 billion euros, marking a 3.5-percent fall year-on-year. The company blamed the drop on currency effects, lower fuel surcharges and accounting changes affecting one of its large contracts.

Also on Wednesday, Deutsche Post announced its decision to get rid of its Postbus long-distance passenger service, agreeing a sale to domestic competitor and market leader Flixbus.

"The Postbus service has not met the company's financial expectations sufficiently," the firm said in a statement.

hg/mrk (AFP, Reuters)