Business

The U.S. Transportation Department’s transportation services index fell 0.4% in 2006, its first annual decline since 2001, DOT said Wednesday.

DaimlerChrysler AG said Wednesday it earned $4.3 billion or $4.17 per share last year, up from $3.8 billion or $3.70 a share in 2005, and the company said its truck unit's sales improved.

Teamsters union leaders who represent auto-haul workers have unanimously approved a plan by private investment firm to reorganize auto hauler Allied Holdings, the union said late Tuesday.

ATA Seeks Alerts to Fleets on Drivers’ CDLs • ATRI Seeking Input for Speed-Governor Survey • Idaho Eyes Raising Truck Speed Limit to 70 MPH • Mitsubishi Fuso Recalls 60,000 Trucks Overseas

Trailer maker Wabash National Corp. reported a fourth-quarter loss of $5 million or 16 cents a share, compared with earning $20 million or 55 cents a year earlier.

U.S. retail sales were unchanged in January following a 1.2% gain in December, the Commerce Department said Wednesday.

In addition to providing billions of dollars for congestion relief, the Department of Transportation’s $67 billion fiscal 2008 budget proposal included millions of dollars for commercial vehicle safety.

U.S. business inventories were unchanged in December, and business sales rose 1.4%, the biggest gain since May, the Commerce Department said Wednesday.

In May 2000, the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration issued a number of proposed changes to the existing hours-of-service rules — rules which, until this point, had remained virtually unchanged for 60 years.

The U.S. trade deficit widened to a record for a fifth straight year in 2006 as purchases of Chinese goods and imported oil overwhelmed an increase in exports, the Commerce Department said Tuesday.