The U.S. Postal Service said Wednesday that it is ending discounts that shipping consolidators such as UPS and DHL use to get packages to the nation's doorsteps, in a move meant to help the Postal Service slow losses but that could see the higher costs passed on to consumers.

The U.S. Postal Service is ending discounts for shipping consolidators, such as UPS and DHL, in an effort to shift money back to the agency. However, it will likely result in consolidators passing on the price increase to consumers.

The US Postal Service is terminating discounts for shipping consolidators like UPS and DHL, which leverage its extensive delivery network to transport about 2 billion packages annually, constituting about a quarter of its total parcel volume.

It could mean higher shipping costs for all sorts of products that are shipped by consolidators who have saved money by using the Postal Service network for final deliveries.