News Briefs - Dec. 18
The Latest Headlines:
- Underwriters Exercise Option on UTi Offering
- Stronger Truck Tires Sales Forecasted
- Volvo to Boost Capacity at Swedish Powertrain Plant
- U.S. May Tap Oil Reserves
- Stronger Truck Tires Sales Forecasted
Underwriters Exercise Option on UTi Offering
UTi Worldwide Inc. said Wednesday that the underwriters of its recent public offering of 5 million shares of stock have exercised their option to purchase an additional 750,000 shares.Bear, Stearns & Co. Inc. was the lead managing underwriter, with JPMorgan, BB&T Capital Markets and Lazard as its co-managers of the group.
The offering was originally prices at $23 a share, the company said in a Dec. 13 announcement.
UTi is a non-asset based supply management company based in Rancho Dominguez, Calif. and is ranked No. 42 on the 2002 Transport Topics 50 listing of the largest logistics companies in the United States and Canada. Transport Topics
(Click here for the full press release.)
Stronger Truck Tires Sales Forecasted
The Rubber Manufacturers Association said tire sales on new medium-duty and heavy-duty trucks would grow 8% in 2002 on top of recovering trailer sales.RMA said in a report released Wednesday that even stronger growth of 17% would occur through 2004 due to an increase in truck sales because of economic and industrial expansion. RMA forecast 3.7 million truck tire sales in 2002 and said sales would top 5 million tires a year by 2004.
The report said replacement truck tire sales would increase 7.5% in 2002 and maintain annual 2.5% growth through 2004. Transport Topics
Volvo to Boost Capacity at Swedish Powertrain Plant
Volvo Powertrain AB said it was investing $42 million to boost capacity at a powertrain manufacturing facility in Sweden, Bloomberg reported Wednesday.The new funding will cover the cost of a new production line for casting and modifications of the Skoevde, Sweden plant’s machining systems.
Volvo Powertrain is a division of Volvo AB, the No. 2 maker of heavy-duty trucks in the world. Transport Topics
U.S. May Tap Oil Reserves
The head of the International Energy Agency said that he expects the United States to open up its strategic oil reserves as the strike in Venezuela continues to disrupt oil shipments, Bloomberg reported.Robert Priddle told Bloomberg that the United States has its “own capacity to react” and will likely do so by opening the strategic reserve, Bloomberg said.
Venezuela is the world’s fifth-largest oil exporter and the No. 4 supplier of oil to the United States.
Motor fuels like diesel and gasoline are distilled from crude oil, and changes in its price are often handed off to consumers at the pump. Opening the strategic reserve could relieve a potential supply crunch if Venezuela continues to be unable to ship crude to the U.S. Transport Topics
