Business
Transport Topics business coverage focuses on the financial, economic, and commercial aspects of the modern freight business. Looking at both the microeconomic and macroeconomic forces shaping bottom lines, the news in this category includes labor news, jobs reports, tonnage and sales indicators, operations analysis, money and banking, mergers, acquisitions, e-commerce, bankruptcy, insurance issues, and more.
Tesla Cuts Model 3 Price for Second Time This Year
Tesla Inc. is cutting the price of its Model 3 sedan for the second time this year, citing the end of a customer-referral program that was a more costly incentive than the company realized.
GM 4Q Earnings Easily Beat Analysts’ Estimates
General Motors Co. reported fourth-quarter earnings that blew away estimates and reiterated the upbeat profit forecast for 2019 it gave last month. The shares rose in U.S. early trading.
With ELD Rollout in Rearview Mirror, Focus Turns to Fleet Management
The telematics-for-trucking market experienced a dramatic explosion in growth over the past three years, driven primarily by the federally mandated rollout of electronic logging devices across most of the longhaul trucking sector. Now that the industry has made that transition to electronic logs, the telematics market is bound to undergo a shakeout because there are more ELD suppliers than the industry needs.
More Private Parking Spaces on the Way as Natso, FHWA Count Spots
Some of the nation’s largest travel-stop companies are adding parking spaces and expanding operations in 2019, as national demand for truck parking continues to rise.
Trump Calls Infrastructure Investment ‘A Necessity’
President Donald Trump called investment in infrastructure “a necessity,” but a detailed articulation of a vision for rebuilding the country’s crumbling roads and bridges was absent from a much-anticipated State of the Union address that focused primarily on security concerns and immigration policy.
UPS Freight President Rich McArdle Optimistic Infrastructure Bill Will Advance
WASHINGTON — President Donald Trump and the current divided Congress create an opportunity for advancing a long-term infrastructure policy measure in the near future, UPS Freight President Rich McArdle said at a U.S. Chamber of Commerce event Feb. 5.
FMCSA Grants One HOS Exemption, Receives Request for Another
The Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration has granted reprieve from hours-of-service rules to one group and received an exemption request from the rules from another.
Patriot Transportation Reports Fiscal 1Q Results
Patriot Transportation Holding, the Jacksonville, Fla.-based parent of Florida Rock & Tank Lines, reported higher profits and revenue in the first fiscal quarter of 2019.
N.Y. Mayor Says Amazon Will Prevail as City Needs Tech
New York Mayor Bill de Blasio said he thinks Amazon.com will prevail in building its huge new campus in the city — despite an opponent being recommended to serve on a board with veto power over the transaction.
USA Truck Reports Improved Financial Results in 4Q
USA Truck’s financial results for the fourth quarter of 2018 show progress in boosting the profitability of its trucking business while efforts continue to do the same for the company’s freight brokerage business unit.