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.
Rep. Jeff Denham: ‘Get Creative on Multiple Solutions’ to Fund Highway Bill
WASHINGTON — A multiyear highway bill would need to include outside-the-box funding proposals for a broad coalition in Congress to support it this year, Rep. Jeff Denham (R-Calif.), a top transportation authorizer in the House, said Feb. 24.
ATA: Tonnage Sets Another Record, up 6.6% Year-over-Year
Truck tonnage set still another record in January, rising 6.6% on a year-over-year basis from the weather-affected month of 2014, American Trucking Associations reported.
February 24, 2015FedEx Partners With Con Edison for Electric Vehicle Research
FedEx Corp. worked with Con Edison in New York City in an experiment to reduce the cost of charging electric vehicles using smart grid technology at its charging stations.
February 24, 2015Expeditors Raises Earnings 19% as Shipments, Margins Grow
Expeditors International of Washington Inc. raised fourth-quarter net income 19% to $99.4 million, or 51 cents per share, as ocean and air freight shipments, and profit margins improved.
February 24, 2015Confidence Among Consumers Falls as Elation Over Lower Fuel Prices Wanes
Consumer confidence fell more than forecast in February as the initial elation over a drop in fuel prices waned and Americans grew less optimistic about prospects for employment and income.
February 24, 2015Diesel’s National Average Price Rises 3.5¢ to $2.90 a Gallon
Diesel’s national average retail price continued its recent string of increases, gaining 3.5 cents to $2.90 a gallon, the highest level in five weeks, the Department of Energy reported.
Home Prices Rise as Limited Supply Forces Property Values Up
Home prices in 20 U.S. cities appreciated at a faster pace in the year ended in December, a sign that a limited supply is forcing up property values.
Shell-Oil Union Talks to Resume This Week Over Strike
Royal Dutch Shell Plc and the United Steelworkers, which represents 30,000 U.S. oil workers, are said to be planning to restart talks this week to resolve a labor dispute as more workers joined in the nation’s biggest refinery strike since 1980.
Trucking Firms With 35,000 Openings Seek Jobless Oil Workers
U.S. oil-company job cuts that cost machinery operator Drew Sanford his spot at Halliburton Co. are shaping up as a boon for truckers desperate for big-rig drivers.
Gasoline Prices Rise For Second Time Since June in Survey
The average price of regular gasoline at U.S. pumps rose for the second time since June, climbing 13.2 cents in the past two weeks to $2.32 a gallon, according to Lundberg Survey Inc.