A.M. Executive Briefing - Sept. 12
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Bridgestone/Firestone May Recall 1.4 Million More Tires
Bridgestone/Firestone, under pressure from U.S. safety officials, might recall an additional 1.4 million Firestone tires, which would bring the recall total to 7.9 million, Bloomberg reported Tuesday.Company officials were to appear before a U.S. Senate committee Tuesday morning, and tell lawmakers what Bridgestone/Firestone will do about the recall expansion, Bloomberg said. The tire maker had originally rejected the request to boost the recall.
Bridgestone/Firestone is currently under investigation for a defect in several types of Firestone tires which may be linked to 88 U.S. deaths and more than 100 injuries. Transport Topics
U.S. West Coast Port Truckers Launch Protest
Truck drivers serving the huge southern California intermodal ports of Long Beach and adjacent Los Angeles docks, plus the northern California port of Oakland, have begun to refuse loads to protest high fuel costs and profit-eating delays at terminals, The Journal of Commerce Online service reports.The story said about half a dozen trucking companies are being affected in southern California - with the largest U.S. container port complex - as independent truckers for them parked their rigs and ignored dispatch calls. The Oakland protest has hit the Pacific Rim Transport terminal, which is a Maersk unit but also serves other terminals, JOC said.
The report noted that across the country, truckers at the port of Savannah, Ga. had a similar protest over the Labor Day weekend.
This also comes in the wake of dramatic trucker protests in various European nations, and after OPEC announced it will boost oil production but markets have kept the oil price high thinking the extra oil output will be too little, too late. Transport Topics
DaimlerChrysler Extends Detroit Diesel Tender Offer Again
DaimlerChrysler AG announced Tuesday that it has extended again its $23-per-share tender offer for all outstanding shares of engine maker Detroit Diesel Corp.The tender offer will now expire Sept. 25 at 5 p.m. EDT, the company said.
As of the close of business on Monday, 17,879,854 shares of Detroit Diesel stock had been validly tendered. Combined with its current holdings, that gives DaimlerChrysler more than 98% of Detroit Diesel's outstanding common stock.
The vehicle maker said it has also completed filing its pre-merger notification under the Hart-Scott-Rodino Act in the United States, and required antitrust notification with the European Commission. Transport Topics
ATA Names Veterans to Safety, Environmental Posts
The American Trucking Associations has beefed up its staff in important policy areas, by hiring a veteran truck safety specialist and an environmental attorney.Joining ATA as director of safety and operations is Neill Thomas, who has spent years developing federal trucking regulations and most recently worked in the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration's office of bus and truck standards.
Trucking industry officials may recognize Thomas as a point man for several Department of Transportation regulations. He helped develop FMCSA's hours-of-service proposal, and worked on the agency's electronic logs pilot test with Werner Enterprises. He will help ATA advance safety policies on a range issues, including commercial driver licensing and substance testing.
Glen Kedzie, a Washington, D.C. environmental attorney, is ATA's new assistant general counsel and environmental counsel. His main job is reviewing and analyzing regulatory actions, so ATA can make policy recommendations on environmental issues.
Kedzie comes to ATA from the National Paint and Coatings Association, where he was counsel for government affairs advising on environmental enforcement and compliance. Before that, he was supervisory attorney in the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency's Office of Enforcement and Compliance Assurance. Dan Whitten, Transport Topics
U.S. Diesel Price Rises Again, But Not as Much
The U.S. national retail diesel price rose again last week, though at a lesser rate than the previous week's seven-cent spike, the Energy Information Administration reported Tuesday.Prices rose two cents to $1.629, with the biggest increase coming in the Rocky Mountain region at almost four cents.
The American Trucking Associations' weekly Fuel Line publication noted that world leaders have called OPEC's decision to increase oil production "a step in the right direction," but some analysts fear the boost may be too little, too late to drive down prices. Transport Topics
Weak Truck Sales Lead to Worse Earnings Outlook at BorgWarner
BorgWarner, manufacturer of components and systems for vehicle powertrains, announced Tuesday it has modified its financial expectations for the third and fourth quarters, due in part to a weak North American truck market.The company said it expects third quarter earnings of approximately 95 cents per share, compared with $1.02 in the 1999 third quarter, and earnings between $5.30 to $5.50 for the year. BorgWarner will also record a one-time after tax restructuring charge of about $19.6 million or 75 cents per share in the third quarter.
Company chairman and chief executive officer John Fiedler said BorgWarner is implementing cost-cutting efforts in order to keep pace despite the slow truck market. Transport Topics
Fed Official Sees Lower U.S. Interest Rates Possible
For the first time in years, an official with the Federal Reserve who helps plan U.S. interest-rate policy is talking about rates possibly coming down.That would be good news to trucking operators who have seen their growing interest cost eat into potential profits at a time when some types of freight moves are slowing and fuel costs have soared.
Dallas Fed President Robert McTeer, whom the Wall Street Journal calls a leading advocate within the Fed of low-inflation "New Economy" thinking, told reporters following a speech to economists Monday that after the U.S. economy gets past the current energy price bulge he would not be surprised to see both inflation and interest rates come back down.
The Fed in mid-1999 began a yearlong series of rate hikes to cool the economy, but has abstained from further tightening moves after a May increase in rates. It last cut rates during a global financial market crisis in 1998.
The Journal on Tuesday noted that McTeer's remarks not only underscore the growing view that the Fed may not return to tighhtening soon, but that some Fed officials are now thinking of easing monetary policy. Transport Topics
European Traffic Woes Continue, Could Worsen if Eurotunnel Union Votes to Strike
Just as truckers' blockades begin to calm down in some European countries, others are worsening. And they could worsen further if Eurotunnel train drivers vote to strike and further disrupt traffic next month, various sources report.British, Dutch and Belgian truckers blockaded highways this week in protest of high fuel prices; German, Spanish and Irish drivers are likely to take similar action within the next week if governments do not find ways to relieve their pain at the pump, Reuters reported Tuesday.
Eurotunnel train drivers belonging to Aslef, a British union, will vote next week on a possible October strike, according to a French newspaper report carried by the Bloomberg news service. A strike would be to protest an agreement between Eurotunnel Plc, which operates the Channel Tunnel between England and France, and the Transport and General Work-ers Union to make that union the only one allowed to represent British Eurotunnel workers, the report said. Transport Topics
INC2inc, Menlo Logistics Team Up
INC2inc, an online supply chain solutions provider for food and beverage manufacturers, and third-party logistics provider Menlo Logistics announced they have reached a deal to offer shipping and logistics to INC2inc's customers.Through this deal, INC2inc's trading partners will have access to real-time load tracking and shipping management, and can make freight claims and pay shipping bills online. Transport Topics
Headlines From Yesterday's P.M. Briefing
- Mexico Will Consider Oil Output Increase; Prices Keep Rising
- Atlanta Airport Seeks FedEx, UPS Help in Cargo Slump
- LA Bus, Train Operators May Strike, Putting More Cars on Roads
- NHTSA Director Says Agency Needs More Money, Authority
- FTC Okays Internet Vehicle-Parts Exchange
- Zero-Emissions Rule Upheld by California Board
- Ryder Selects eCredit.com to Speed Credit Process
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