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.
Editorial: Stay the Course
Last week, the Federal Reserve, which has been keeping interest rates at rock bottom, agreed to continue holding short-term rates near zero for the next couple of years.
April 30, 2012Opinion: Just Who Is Qualifying Whom?
Carriers have many reasons for maintaining good scores on the new Compliance, Safety, Accountability program introduced by the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration.
April 30, 2012Ferro Says FMCSA Is Determined to Weed Out Bad Drivers, Carriers
BELLEVUE, Wash. — The Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration is continuing to develop new tools to weed out bad drivers and motor carriers, the nation’s top trucking regulator told a group of law enforcement officials and inspectors meeting here.
April 30, 2012NLRB Certifies Vote for Teamsters Union to Represent L.A. Drayage Driver Unit
The National Labor Relations Board on April 20 certified the Teamsters union as the bargaining agent for port truckers who are employed by Toll Global Forwarding Holdings in Los Angeles.
April 30, 2012Rethinking Foreign Costs Spurs Manufacturing in U.S.
Manufacturing is making a comeback in North America, a trend that industry experts say is being driven by a re-examination of the cost of producing and shipping goods from Asia to customers in the United States and Europe — and new supply-chain realities.
April 30, 2012March Truck Tonnage Rises 2.7%
Truck tonnage grew in March, but by the smallest year-over-year rate since December 2009, rising at a moderate 2.7% pace that is likely to be followed by similar results in the months ahead, American Trucking Associations said last week.
April 30, 2012Trailer Orders Surge Cools, but Manufacturers Stay Busy
New orders for trailers continued at a strong pace in March, despite dropping 30% from a year ago, ACT Research Co., Columbus, Ind., reported, adding that total orders for the first quarter were down just 1% from the strong performance in the first three months of 2011.
April 30, 2012Several Major Truck Stops Install DEF Pumps on Fuel Islands, Chain Executives Say
Executives at three major truck stop chains said that they are installing diesel exhaust fluid pumps on fuel islands at all or most of their locations, which drop costs significantly for truckers, despite the current slow demand.
April 30, 2012Senate, House Set Conference Panel to Resolve Differences in Highway Bill
The 47-member House and Senate conference committee set up to produce a compromise transportation bill has scheduled its first meeting for May 8, but contentious issues have surfaced already that could delay or sink the effort.
April 30, 2012U.S. Package Operations Help Boost UPS’ 1Q Earnings
UPS Inc. posted a 6% increase in first-quarter net income, boosted by the performance of its U.S. package operations.
April 30, 2012