Business

U.S. automobile sales fell or were flat in November and an ongoing economic slump will continue to hurt U.S. auto sales in 2008, the Associated Press reported Tuesday.

Private-equity firm Fenway Partners said Tuesday it has acquired a majority interest in East Coast Warehouse & Distribution Corp. and related companies, including Safeway Trucking Corp.

Truckload carrier Landstar System will increase fourth-quarter revenue in the “mid-single-digit range,” Chief Executive Officer Henry Gerkens said in a conference call with investors, Bloomberg reported.

J.P. Morgan transport analyst Thomas Wadewitz lowered his fourth-quarter earnings estimates for six major railroads by an average of 2.8% and cut his estimates for three truckload companies by an average of 8.7%, the Associated Press reported.

A large biodiesel plant that will be one of the world’s 10 largest biodiesel facilities is scheduled to open Tuesday in Iowa, the Albert Lea (Minn.) Tribune newspaper reported.

U.S. automakers say congressional legislation to boost U.S. fuel-economy standards 40% should halt efforts by states to restrict emissions, Bloomberg reported Monday.

The Institute for Supply Management’s manufacturing index dipped slightly in November from October, ISM said Monday.

Ultra Logistics has launched a new version of its software program that it said will offer greater flexibility to shippers managing their supply chains.

Southern California’s ports are about to begin a multibillion-dollar program that is being watched all over the world to repair, replace or clean up engines to reduce pollution, the New York Times reported Monday.