Government

The U.S. economy grew at a rate of 2.2% in the fourth quarter, the Commerce Department said Wednesday, in lowering its earlier estimate of 3.5%.

Transportation stocks, including airlines, trucking companies and railroads, were among the hardest hit in Tuesday’s stock market tumble, the Associated Press reported.

WASHINGTON — Rep. James Oberstar (D-Minn.), a key transportation legislator and a longtime opponent of increasing truck sizes and weights, told Transport Topics he would now support a pilot study of larger vehicles on U.S. highways.

Trucking executives said efforts to ban the use of cellular phones from the nation’s highways would receive industry support as long as state laws do not also ban two-way radios and satellite communication devices.

FedEx Corp. said Tuesday it has set new measures aimed at modernizing the retirement plans for most of its employees, including enhancing its 401(k) plans.

American Trucking Associations’ advanced seasonally adjusted truck tonnage index fell 3.6% in January following an increase in December, ATA said Tuesday.

Retail diesel fuel’s national average price rose for a fourth straight week, jumping 6 cents to $2.551 a gallon, the Department of Energy said Monday.

Tank truck carrier Quality Distribution’s fourth-quarter profit was $6.2 million or 31 cents a share, compared with $6.2 million or 32 cents for the previous fourth quarter.

Durable goods orders posted their biggest decline in three months, falling 7.8% in January, the Commerce Department reported Tuesday.

Consumer confidence reached the highest level in five years, the New York-based Conference Board said Tuesday.