Katrina Delivers Blow to an Already Flattening Economy

n economy that was showing signs of flattening even before Hurricane Katrina bludgeoned the Gulf Coast will now have to battle even harder to regain its footing as high energy costs threaten the businesses of shippers and their trucking providers.

Recent reports from government and private analysts and interviews with transportation managers reveal a sense of unease over whether consumer spending — usually about two-thirds of gross domestic product — can remain at high levels. Soaring prices for gasoline, natural gas and home heating oil are gobbling up higher proportions of what had been disposable income for food, clothing, vacations and home appliances.

“Hurricane Katrina is past, but will likely end up the single worst natural disaster in U.S. history,” wrote Standard & Poor’s financial analysts David Wyss and Beth Ann Bovino Sept. 2.