UK regulator Ofcom has authorised Royal Mail to stop delivering second-class letters on Saturdays and to move to an alternate-weekday schedule from 28 July. The change, the biggest cut to the universal postal service in more than a decade, follows a sharp fall in letter volumes and aims to stabilise the loss-making letters division. Ofcom estimates the new timetable will save Royal Mail between £250 million and £425 million a year. At the same time, the regulator has eased some performance benchmarks, lowering the next-day delivery target for first-class mail to 90% from 93% and the three-day target for second-class mail to 95% from 98.5%. A new back-stop requires 99% of all letters to arrive no more than two days late. Royal Mail’s parent, International Distribution Services, welcomed the decision, calling it essential for a “reliable, efficient and financially sustainable” service. To address public concern over rising stamp prices—first-class now costs £1.70 versus 60p in 2013—Ofcom has begun a review of pricing and affordability, with a consultation due next year. Separately, U.S. chain Ulta Beauty has agreed to buy British cosmetics retailer Space NK in a deal reported by Sky News to exceed £300 million ($408 million), giving the Illinois-based company an immediate footprint of 83 stores across the UK and Ireland and marking its first move into the British market.