News Briefs - Nov. 18
The Latest Headlines:
- Another Possible Case of Mad Cow Disease Discovered
- Jobless Claims Fall by 3,000 in Latest Week
- Weather Could Play Big Role in Price of Oil
- IANA Says Intermodal Volume Grew 9.2% in Third Quarter
- Segmentz Revenues Surge, but Posts 3Q Loss
- Canada: Bridge in British Columbia Will Ease Border Traffic
- Jobless Claims Fall by 3,000 in Latest Week
Another Possible Case of Mad Cow Disease Discovered
Agriculture Department officials said Thursday a new case of mad cow disease may have turned up in the United States, but it would be at least four days before it could be confirmed.The department said in a statement one test for mad cow disease, or bovine spongiform encephalopathy, came back as inconclusive.
"The inconclusive result does not mean we have found another case of BSE in this country," said Andrea Morgan, Agriculture's associate deputy administrator, animal and plant health inspection service. "Inconclusive results are a normal component of screening tests, which are designed to be extremely sensitive so they will detect any sample that could possibly be positive."
Jobless Claims Fall by 3,000 in Latest Week
The number of Americans filing initial claims for jobless benefits fell by 3,000 last week to 334,000, the Labor Department said Thursday.Weekly claims have averaged 344,109 so far this year, compared with 402,000 for all of 2003. Analysts said that was a sign businesses were holding on to workers as demand improves, Bloomberg reported.
The four-week moving average of claims, a less-volatile indicator, rose by 1,000 last week to 338,250. It still was the second week that the average was less than 340,000.
The number of people continuing to collect state jobless benefits fell to 2.792 million in the week that ended Nov. 6 from 2.808 million a week earlier. Transport Topics
Weather Could Play Big Role in Price of Oil
With crude oil futures trading around $46 a barrel in New York, analysts said this winter’s thermometer could determine whether it rises or falls in the months ahead, the Wall Street Journal reported Thursday.The industry is already operating near its full capacity to deliver energy, so a cold snap could cause a spike in demand and send crude-oil prices soaring back well above $50 a barrel, the Journal said. However, if the winter is mild it could push prices down around $40.
An unusually mild or cold winter could swing global oil demand by one million barrels a day in either direction, which would amount to more than twice the daily oil production lost from the hurricane damage this fall in the Gulf of Mexico, the Journal said. Transport Topics
IANA Says Intermodal Volume Grew 9.2% in Third Quarter
The Intermodal Association of North America reported a 9.2% increase in intermodal volume for the third quarter of 2004.The increase marked the 10th consecutive quarter of intermodal growth, and the strongest gain in volume since the first quarter of 2003, IANA said. International containers showed their strongest gains in 18 months with an overall 13.3% increase over the same quarter a year earlier.
IANA said gains in import, export and domestic repositioning of units were evident in all regions, with seven of nine regions posting double-digit growth.
Trailer volumes were also up through the third quarter, IANA reported. The association said 53-foot units made up more than one-third of total trailer counts for the first time since 1996, when they were only 7% of the total.
IANA also said 28-foot trailer volume increased 7.8% compared to the same quarter last year. This showed that railroads are regaining traction with less-than-truckload and parcel carriers that traditionally used the equipment, IANA said. Transport Topics
Segmentz Revenues Surge, but Posts 3Q Loss
Transportation and logistics services company Segmentz Inc. said its net loss for the third quarter was $288,783 or 1 cents per share, compared with a net income of $52,042 or 1 cent a year earlier.Revenues increased about 257% to $14.4 million, which Segmentz said in a statement was due in part to recent acquisitions and growth in operations.
The company attributed the net loss for the quarter to acquisition costs and the higher costs of fuel, insurance and other services. Transport Topics
Canada: Bridge in British Columbia Will Ease Border Traffic
The Canadian governement said construction of a new bridge in British Columbia will improve the flow of traffic from the Trans-Canada Highway to the Canada-U.S. border, the Vancouver Sun reported.The bridge, which is expected to be completed by July 2005, will carry two lanes of southbound traffic leading to the border.
The unnamed bridge will be built parallel to the existing Roger Pierlet Bridge on Highway 15, the Sun reported. Transport Topics
