News Briefs - Jan. 13
The Latest Headlines:
- Allied Holdings' Stock Resumes Trading
- Consolidated Freightways Settles Discrimination Lawsuit
- Trailer Maker to Expand Output in 2005
- Shipping Cos. Consider Alternative Ports to Avoid Delays
- Jobless Claims Rise by 10,000 in Latest Week
- Import Prices Fall 1.3% in December
- Consolidated Freightways Settles Discrimination Lawsuit
Allied Holdings' Stock Resumes Trading
Auto hauler Allied Holdings Inc. said it was informed by the American Stock Exchange its common stock would resume trading on Thursday.The company previously said the American Stock Exchange suspended trading of its common shares on Nov. 29 in part because it failed to file its Form 10-Q report for the quarter ended Sept. 30. The report was filed with the government earlier this week.
Allied is ranked No. 22 on the Transport Topics 100 list of the largest U.S. and Canadian trucking companies. Transport Topics
Consolidated Freightways Settles Discrimination Lawsuit
Consolidated Freightways Corp., which ceased operations in Sept. 2002, settled a racial discrimination lawsuit on Wednesday for $2.75 million, the Associated Press reported.The settlement called for former less-than-truckload carrier to pay the 12 former workers who complained of racial harassment and intimidation at the company's Kansas City, Mo., facility. However, a federal bankruptcy court will decide how much they actually receive, AP reported.
Consolidated Freightways denied any wrongdoing, and its attorney said the bankrupt company settled only because that course was cheaper than fighting the lawsuit in court, AP reported. Transport Topics
Trailer Maker to Expand Output in 2005
Utility Trailer Manufacturing Co. told Transport Topics Jan. 5 it planned to build 10% to 20% more trailers in 2005 than a year earlier, but did not provide an exact number.It also said it completed the expansion of its dry-van manufacturing plant in Paragould, Ark., and had begun filling about 100 new jobs. Utility announced the expansion in September.
The company also said it was halfway through an expansion at its Marion, Va., facility, which produces refrigerated units. Roger Gilroy
Shipping Cos. Consider Alternative Ports to Avoid Delays
Some shipping companies are searching from Alaska to Mexico for ports able to handle goods from Asia because of bottlenecks in Southern California, Bloomberg reported.The harbors are being sought as alternatives to Los Angeles and Long Beach, the biggest U.S. port complex, where a record of almost 13 million containers crossed the docks in 2004. Although the ports are not currently experiencing major delays, imports from Asia are expected to surge again this year, Bloomberg said.
Nippon Yusen, Japan's biggest shipping line, is considering sending goods through Prince Rupert, on the Canada-Alaska border, and Manzanillo, on Mexico's Pacific Coast, Bloomberg said. In addition, MaerskSeaLand, the world's biggest cargo line, is reviewing routing choices and might consider Prince Rupert, Anne Kappel, a spokeswoman for the company, told Bloomberg.
Idling a ship due to port delays costs as much as $300,000 a week, for expenses such as salaries and fuel, according to Bloomberg. Transport Topics
Jobless Claims Rise by 10,000 in Latest Week
The number of Americans filing initial claims for jobless benefits increased by 10,000 in the week ended Jan. 8 to 367,000, the Labor Department reported Thursday.Labor also said the four-week average of claims, a less-volatile measure, rose to 344,000 from 331,250.
However, the number of unemployed on the benefit rolls after claiming an initial week of aid declined by 219,000 to 2.631 million in the week ending Jan. 1, the lowest reading since April 7, 2001. Transport Topics
Import Prices Fall 1.3% in December
The Labor Department said Thursday the price of goods imported into the United States fell by 1.3% in December, the largest decline since April 2003.The decline was led by an 11.5% drop in the price of petroleum products. But non-petroleum import prices increased 0.5% after rising a revised 0.9% in November.
In the last 12 months, non-petroleum imports have risen 3.8%, which Labor said was the largest increase since a 4% gain between August 1994-1995.
Export prices were up 0.2% compared with 0.3% in November, the report said. Transport Topics
