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Lithium batteries go on post office banned list
Last updated: May 12th, 2012 12:19 AM (PDT)

The U.S. Postal Service is banning international shipments of electronics using lithium batteries – such as smartphones, laptops and iPads – citing the risk of fire.

Beginning Wednesday, consumers may no longer make the shipments, including to army and diplomatic post offices. That means friends and family will have to use more expensive private companies such as UPS and FedEx to ship electronics to U.S. troops abroad.

The Postal Service cited discussion by the International Civil Aviation Organization and the Universal Postal Union. They issue semi-binding guidelines for global trade.

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