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.
Israeli Entrepreneur Races Tesla to Get Electric Trucks on Road
Tevva Motors Ltd., headed by a former Israeli submariner who’s vying with Elon Musk’s Tesla Inc. to develop electric-powered trucks, secured a major investment that will enable it to put the vehicles on the road this year.
Truck Tonnage Continues Robust Run, Climbing 7.8% in May
Truck tonnage rose 7.8% in May compared with the same month last year, according to American Trucking Associations’ advanced seasonally adjusted for-hire Truck Tonnage Index. The index was up 0.7% in May compared with April.
NLRB Rules UPS Illegally Insisted Teamsters Proposal Be Written in English
UPS Supply Chain Solutions Inc. illegally insisted that a Teamsters union local in Puerto Rico translate its proposal for a collective bargaining agreement from Spanish to English, the National Labor Relations Board ruled.
Europe Said to Seek WTO Revamp in Face of Trump Trade Challenge
European Union leaders plan to push for improvements in the way the World Trade Organization operates, saying it is important to uphold the global commercial order amid “growing” tensions prompted by President Donald Trump’s tariffs.
John Conkin, Longtime Commercial Lender in Trucking, Dies at 62
John Conkin, a longtime commercial lender and supporter of the trucking industry who most recently was managing director at BMO Transportation Finance, died June 3 after a long battle with cancer. He was 62.
Florida State Truck Driving Championships
Photo coverage of winners and scenes from the 2018 Florida Truck Driving Championships June 7-9 in Daytona Beach, Fla. (Evan Ogden, Den of Oak Photography)
June 19, 2018Investors Bet on the Uber of Brazilian Trucking
Brazilian truckers still get much of their business off of handwritten placards. The antiquated and inefficient system was ripe, low-hanging fruit to Federico Vega.
UPS Invests $130 Million in Natural Gas Vehicles, Infrastructure
UPS Inc. announced an additional $130 million investment in compressed natural gas vehicles, including 400 semi-tractors and 330 terminal trucks and five more fueling stations — underscoring the company’s role as a major catalyst for wide-scale adoption of natural gas vehicles.
China Vows to Retaliate as Trump Targets $200 Billion in Tariffs
Trade tensions between the world’s biggest economies intensified, with China vowing to retaliate “forcefully” against President Donald Trump’s threatened tariffs on an additional $200 billion in Chinese imports.
Geotab Buys EV Telematics Firm FleetCarma
Telematics provider Geotab expanded in the electric vehicle fleet arena, purchasing Waterloo, Ontario-based FleetCarma.
June 19, 2018