Government

WASHINGTON — The Justice Department says United Parcel Service Inc. must pay $8.4 million to settle allegations that the company was overcharging the federal government for package deliveries.

The Georgia Ports Authority introduced dual rail service from the Port of Savannah to Chicago, with cargo reaching the Midwestern city in less than three days.

A federal appeals court has sent an appeal in an Idaho hemp civil lawsuit back to a state court, deciding to abstain from a ruling on whether to return to the owners a 6,700-pound load of hemp seized en route from Oregon to Colorado by Idaho State Police earlier this year.

BEIJING — China will lift punitive tariffs imposed on U.S. soybeans and pork in a trade war with Washington, a state news agency said Sept. 13, adding to conciliatory gestures by the two sides ahead of negotiations.

WASHINGTON — U.S. retail sales rose moderately in August, driven higher by a jump in auto buying and healthy online sales. But there also were signs that consumers have become more cautious.

Trump administration officials have discussed offering a limited trade agreement to China that would delay and even roll back some U.S. tariffs for the first time in exchange for Chinese commitments on intellectual property and agricultural purchases, according to sources.

WASHINGTON — The United States and China traded conciliatory gestures, raising hopes they can de-escalate a standoff over trade that has shaken financial markets and cast gloom over the global economy.

For those still wondering about the state of the commercial vehicle market in the United States, ACT Research during a webinar Sept. 11 delivered a forecast that conditions continue to deteriorate and that pullback in build rates for heavy-duty trucks and trailers is “imminent.”

Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell urged the chamber’s funding leaders to proceed quickly with measures that would guarantee funding for federal agencies through the next fiscal year that starts Oct. 1.