Universal Postal Union Reaches Deal on Rates, Averts Exit by US

White House trade advisor Peter Navarro (L) looks on during a break during an extraordinary congress of the Universal Postal Union (UPU) with the US threatening to quit the global body as early as next month, in Geneva on Sept. 24, 2019. Fabrice Coffrini/AFP/Getty Images

The Universal Postal Union (UPU) reached a unanimous agreement on international shipping rates on Sept. 25, avoiding an exit from the union by the United States.

The 192 member nations voted to approve changes to price rates on bulky letters and small parcels shipped internationally. Under the new system, countries can declare their own rates as soon as July 2020.