News Briefs - July 16
- AAA Says Gas Prices Higher as Demand Increases
- Frozen Food Drops Arthur Andersen
- Greenspan Says Economy on Road to Full Recovery
- W.Va. House Members Discuss Coal Truck Bill
- Caterpillar Earns 58 Cents Per Share in 2Q
- GM Sees Net Income, Production Increase
- 2001 Air Freight Volume Down 8.1%
- Con-Way, Bureau Join Trend to Hike LTL Rates
- Frozen Food Drops Arthur Andersen
AAA Says Gas Prices Higher as Demand Increases
Reduced supplies of gasoline in the West and Midwest are pushing the average price of gasoline higher across the United States, AAA’s Fuel Gauge Report said Tuesday.Though the majority of commercial trucks run on diesel fuel, some have gasoline-powered engines, making the price of gas an important factor in the cost of trucking.
AAA said that the price of regular, self-service gasoline is expected to rise from its current level of $1.396 per gallon in the next few weeks. The price of gas has not been above $1.40 since June 5.
Since mid-June, prices for gasoline have increased in the Midwest, West, the Great Lakes area and the southwestern United States. Conversely, prices have fallen in the mid-Atlantic, New England and Southeast. Transport Topics
Frozen Food Drops Arthur Andersen
Refrigerated carrier Frozen Food Express said Tuesday it has dropped Arthur Andersen LLP as its independent public accountant.The Dallas-based company notified Andersen on Tuesday that KPMG LLP would be engaged as Frozen Food’s new independent accountant.
The company said in a release there were no disagreements with Arthur Andersen on any accounting principles or practices, financial statement disclosure or auditing scope or procedures.
Frozen Food Express is ranked No. 41 on the 2000-2001 Transport Topics 100 list of the largest U.S. trucking companies. Transport Topics
(Click here for the full press release.)
Greenspan Says Economy on Road to Full Recovery
An upbeat Federal Reserve Chairman Alan Greenspan told Congress Tuesday that the U.S. economy was on the road to full recovery, the Associated Press reported.A recovery would be good for the trucking industry because a healthy economy will lead to more freight shipments and increased revenue for trucking companies.
In his semiannual report to Congress, Greenspan told the Senate Banking Committee the effects of recent bad news involving the stock market will linger, but without any further major disruptions, the economy is ready to make a move toward sustainable growth, AP reported.
The chairman also said that to restore investor confidence in the markets, corporate executives must be held accountable for irregularities in their accounting, AP reported. Transport Topics
W.Va. House Members Discuss Coal Truck Bill
Democrats and Republicans in the West Virginia House are expected to hold caucuses Tuesday to discuss Gov. Wise's bill to raise legal weight limits for coal trucks, the Charleston Gazette reported.Currently, truck weight limits vary in the state from 65,000 pounds on rural roads to 80,000 pounds on four-lane highways and interstates. At the urging of the coal and trucking officials, Wise is pushing to raise the limits to as much as 120,000 pounds on some roads.
The bill would also include tougher enforcement provisions on violations of weight limits and give sole authority for setting weight limits to the state's Department of Transportation.
The story said that right now it is unclear whether the bill will actually pass a House vote. Transport Topics
GM Sees Net Income, Production Increase
Automaker General Motors Corp. saw its second-quarter net income more than double – rising from $477 million or $1.03 per share, to $1.29 billion or $2.43 a share, the company said Tuesday.The Detroit-based company said its plants produced 14% more vehicles during the quarter than they did in the second quarter of 2001. Increased production helps the trucking industry because it means more shipments of parts and vehicles to and from GM plants.
Revenues at the world’s largest automaker rose 4.4% to $48.3 billion, from $46.2 billion the previous year.
Analysts credited the increases in production and net income to consumer discounts aimed at boosting sales, Bloomberg reported. Transport Topics
Caterpillar Earns 58 Cents Per Share in 2Q
Diesel engine manufacturer and construction equipment maker Caterpillar Inc. reported a net income on Tuesday of $200 million or 58 cents per share for the second quarter of 2002.The Peoria, Ill.-based company’s earnings came on revenues from sales of $5.29 billion.
Caterpillar said in a release that truck and bus engine sales “rebounded strongly” during the quarter, but sales and revenues were still $197 million lower than during the same period of 2001.
During the second quarter of 2001, the company had a net income of $271 million or 78 cents.
"Business for the first half of the year has been extremely difficult, in line with our expectations," said Chairman and Chief Executive Officer Glen Barton.
For the year to date, the company claimed profits of $280 million, or 81 cents per share. This came on sales and revenues of $9.7 billion.
Caterpillar said it expects that lower sales volume will push profits for the year down about 15% from last year. Transport Topics
(Click here for the full press release.)
2001 Air Freight Volume Down 8.1%
A new study published by the International Air Transport Association showed the volume of international freight dropped 8.1% in 2001 compared with 2000, while domestic freight shipments were down 7.7%, the Journal of Commerce reported Monday.A decrease in the volume of air freight means less demand for trucks to deliver goods to and from airports, but also means that more shippers are turning to trucks to carry their loads in an attempt to cut costs.
The IATA called 2001 the worst year in the history of air transport, as the combination of reduced traffic, falling yields and rising expenses cost airlines billions internationally, JOC said. Transport Topics
Con-Way, Bureau Join Trend to Hike LTL Rates
Another major less-than-truckload carrier and a U.S.-Canadian rate bureau have joined the trend of those announcing general rate increases.Con-Way Transportation Services of Ann Arbor, Mich., said it has told customers it will raise its general tariff rates by 5.9% starting Aug. 1. The company confirmed the increase July 8.
A collection of three regional less-than-truckload carriers owned by CNF Inc., Con-Way last raised its rates in Aug. 8, 2001, by the identical amount.
The company was joined by the North American Transportation Council of Buffalo, N.Y., and Fort Erie, Ontario. It is suggesting an increase of the same 5.9% to its 90 trucking company members, effective Aug. 5.
The council is affiliated with the Freight Carriers Association of Canada, which recently recommended a 5.5% increase with the same effective date.
Those figures are in line with numbers floated so far this year by other LTL carriers and rate bureaus. Since May, at least 11 LTL trucking companies and three rate bureaus have increased their general rates or tariffs.
These schedules are what carriers charge their low-volume customers and form the basis for contract negotiations with high-volume shippers as well. Jonathan S. Reiskin
(This story appeared in the July 15 print edition of Transport Topics.)
