News Briefs - May 5
The Latest Headlines:
- CF to Sell Distribution Facility in Illinois
- Price of Crude Oil Rises on Summer Concerns
- April Job-Cut Announcements Rise by 71%
- Gasoline Prices Still Falling, Lundberg Says
- Report: Daimler Looking at China Joint Ventures
- Workers at Two Freightliner Facilities Vote for UAW
- Investment Firm Buys Smith System
- Price of Crude Oil Rises on Summer Concerns
CF to Sell Distribution Facility in Illinois
Bankrupt less-than-truckload carrier Consolidated Freightways said Monday it was placing its distribution facility in Evansville, Ill., for sale to the highest bidder through an open auction scheduled for May 21.In September, Consolidated Freightways said it was discontinuing operations, cutting about 15,500 jobs and filing for Chapter 11 bankruptcy. CF said in a release that it had sold 68 properties to date for $176 million.
The Evansville property is a 40-door cross-dock distribution facility situated on 4.2 acres. A contract price of $725,000 has been established for the property.
Consolidated Freightways was ranked No. 12 on the 2002 Transport Topics 100 list of the largest U.S. and Canadian trucking companies. Transport Topics
(Click here for the full press release.)
Price of Crude Oil Rises on Summer Concerns
The price of crude oil rose in New York Monday afternoon on speculation that gasoline may be in short supply this summer, Bloomberg reported.Crude is distilled down into diesel fuel and gasoline, making it important to the trucking industry. About one-third of commercial trucking uses gasoline.
Crude oil for June delivery was up 71 cents at $26.38 a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange, the biggest increase since April 17, Bloomberg said. The International Petroleum Exchange in London was closed for a holiday.
The Energy Department said last week inventories of cleaner-burning reformulated gasoline are down 24% from a year ago. The fuel is required in New York, Chicago and all of California.
U.S. crude-oil inventories are 12% below year-earlier levels, DOE said. Transport Topics
April Job-Cut Announcements Rise by 71%
Employers in April announced plans to cut the largest number of jobs in five months, according to Challenger, Gray & Christmas Inc.Companies said they would cut 146,399 jobs during the month, 71% more than in March and the highest number since November. In April 2002, employers announced plans to release 112,649 workers.
Job-cut announcements aren’t the same as firings because many reductions will be carried out through attrition or early retirement.
The increase was led by a surge in announcements by government and non-profit agencies, the report said. Transport Topics
Gasoline Prices Still Falling, Lundberg Says
Gasoline prices dropped 6.44 cents per gallon on average over the past two weeks as crude oil prices continued to fall, according to the Lundberg survey of gas stations nationwide.About one-third of commercial trucking uses gasoline.
The average price for gas, including all grades and taxes, was about $1.58 per gallon Friday. On April 18, the date of the last survey, gas cost about $1.64 a gallon.
It was the third straight two-week drop, adding up to a decline of more than 18 cents per gallon since prices peaked March 21 at an average of $1.76 per gallon, the Associated Press reported.
On Friday, the national weighted average price of gasoline at self-serve pumps, including taxes, was about $1.55 for regular, $1.65 for mid-grade and $1.74 for premium. Transport Topics
Report: Daimler Looking at China Joint Ventures
DaimlerChrysler AG is in talks to form joint ventures in China to build Mercedes-Benz cars and trucks, Reuters reported Monday citing a German newspaper.According to the Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung, Daimler managers wanted to build vehicles with Beijing Automotive Industry Corp., and also launch a venture with Southeast Motor Corp. to build Mercedes light trucks.
DaimlerChrysler said in February that it was in talks with potential partners after ending talks with China's FAW on a possible trucks partnership, Reuters said.
Daimler has pinpointed China as one of the most important areas for expansion in its trucks business but also said the company is under no time pressure to strike a deal, Reuters reported. Transport Topics
Workers at Two Freightliner Facilities Vote for UAW
The United Auto Workers said late Friday that more than 80% of workers at two Freightliner facilities in North Carolina voted for UAW representation during elections on May 1.Technicians at a Freightliner pre-delivery inspection facilities in Cleveland, N.C,. and Mt. Holly, N.C., both voted for UAW, the union said.
There have now been five Freightliner facilities that have voted in favor of UAW this year.
In January, workers at Freightliner production plants in Cleveland, N.C., and Gastonia, N.C., voted for UAW representation.
UAW also said that in April, 88% of workers at Freightliner plant in Duluth, Ga., voted the union. Transport Topics
(Click here for the full press release.)
Investment Firm Buys Smith System
Smith System, a provider of professional driver safety training, said April 29 a New York investment firm had acquired it for an undisclosed sum.The driver training company said David M. Boucher and McFadden Brothers of New York City bought it from CNA Financial Corp., and that Smith would continue to operate out of Arlington, Texas, under the direction of Chief Executive Officer Tony Douglas.
Boucher, chairman of McFadden’s other transportation operating companies, will serve as Smith’s chairman, the company said.
Douglas told Transport Topics that tying itself to McFadden — which also owns Houston-based Cryogenic Transportation and an Easton, Pa.-based passenger transportation provider called Easton Coach Co. — was a strategic move for the company. Tiffany Wlazlowski
This story appeared in the May 5 print edition of Transport Topics.
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