Executive Briefing - April 25
- Calif. Refinery Fire May Drive Gas Prices Up
- Cummins Chief Lobbies for Indiana Loan
- Ryder to Close D.C. Office
- Bush to Compromise on Taxes
- Norfolk Southern Reports Earnings Gain
- Oshkosh Wins Army Contract
- Florida East Coast Industries Earnings Fall
- DaimlerChrysler Opens Year With Loss
- Toyota Raises Its Stake in Hino
- ArvinMeritor Earnings Fall 64%
- GM Drops Share Buy in China Truck Firm; To Pursue Options
- Utah Road Project Hits Bump
- New Study Supports Indiana Road Work
Calif. Refinery Fire May Drive Gas Prices Up
A refinery fire in southern California may push gas prices up by 25 to 30 cents per gallon, KPIX-TV 5 in San Francisco reported.The fire occurred at a plant in Carson that produces 125,000 barrels of oil per day. Carson is located about 18 miles south of Los Angeles.
Although the damage is still being accessed, the director of the Northern California Service Station Association said that he expects gas prices to rise immediately. Transport Topics
Cummins Chief Lobbies for Indiana Loan
Tim Solso, chief executive for Cummins Inc. (CUM), has made a personal plea to members of the Indiana General Assembly for $35 million in loan guarantees he said are needed to preserve the company.
According to the Indianapolis Star, Solso said the funding is needed to develop a new generation of diesel engines in cooperation with an another company, possibly Navistar International (NAV).
A Navistar spokesman confirmed that discussions of some sort of cooperative effort involving the two companies are going on.
Solso, who said the loan guarantees are needed because the company’s debt-to-capital ratio is at 50%, pledged to maintain Cummins’ headquarters in Indiana, and to keep a significant manufacturing and technical presence in the state.Transport Topics.
Ryder to Close D.C. Office
Ryder System (R) said Wednesday that it would close its Washington, D.C. government relations office and transfer responsibilities to its headquarters in Miami.
Ryder is a major provider of logistics, supply chain, transportation and fleet services.
It is ranked No. 13 on the Transport Topics 100 list of U.S. trucking companies, based on 1999 data. Transport Topics
(Click here for the press release.)
Bush to Compromise on Taxes
President Bush said in an interview Wednesday that he’s ready to compromise on the size of his proposed $1.6 trillion tax cut, but urged House and Senate negotiators to give priority to across-the-board cuts in tax rates, the Associated Press reported.He told AP that the tax cut would be smaller than his $1.6 trillion plan but larger than the $1.2 trillion that was budgeted by the Senate. AP reported that one administration official, speaking anonymously, said the White House wants a $1.4 trillion tax cut.
The report gave no details on how the shape of the 10-year tax cut might be adjusted. Transport Topics
Norfolk Southern Reports Earnings Gain
Norfolk Southern Corp. (NSC) reported first-quarter earnings of $74 million or 19 cents per share, compared with a net loss of $48 million or 12 cents in the first quarter of 2000.
The current results reflect an after-tax gain of $13 million related to the 1998 sale of North American Van Lines, while the 2000 results included an after-tax workforce reduction charge of $62 million.
Without those charges, the first-quarter net would be $61 million, compared to a net of $14 million in 2000.
The company said it was able to increase capacity during the quarter while eliminating some expenses. Transport Topics
(Click here for the full press release.)
Oshkosh Wins Army Contract
Oshkosh Truck (OTRKB) said Tuesday that the U.S. Army awarded the company a contract to retrofit eight Family of Medium Tactical Vehicles (FMTVs) with proposed technological enhancements.
Under this contract, the truck manufacturer will have the eight vehicles upgraded and ready for testing in February 2002.
Oshkosh will upgrade four 2.5-ton cargo models and four 5-ton cargo models.
Click here for the full press release.)
Florida East Coast Industries Earnings Fall
Florida East Coast Industries (FLA) said it earned $2.9 million or 8 cents per share during the first quarter of 2001, compared with year-earlier earnings of $10.8 million or 30 cents per share.The company, which operates subsidiary Florida Express Carriers, said it had flat revenues from its trucking business. Although pure trucking was down, intermodal revenue was up, leveling the year-to-year revenue comparison.
The St. Augustine, Fla.-based company also operates warehousing, logistics and railroad business subsidiaries. Transport Topics
DaimlerChrysler Opens Year With Loss
Losses at Chrysler and Mitsubishi subsidiaries, as well as falling truck sales, dragged DaimlerChrysler AG (DCX) to a net loss of $333 million (373 euros) in the first quarter.
The figure excludes about 3.1 billion euros ($2.8 billion in U.S. currency) in one-time charges associated with reductions of 26,000 jobs at Chrysler and 9,500 at Mitsubishi.
U.S. market share for DaimlerChrysler, excluding Mercedes-Benz vehicles, fell from 15.5% last year to 14.4%.
DaimlerChrysler acquired a controlling stake in Mitsubishi last year.Transport Topics
(Click here for the full press release.)
Toyota Raises Its Stake in Hino
Toyota Motor Corp. (TM) will pay $542 million to raise its stake in Hino Motors, Japan's biggest truck maker, to 50.1% from 36.6%, news services reported.
The third-largest automaker will appoint Tadaaki Jagawa, an executive vice president, as president of Hino.
Toyota is strengthening its ties with affiliates like Hino to compete with global rivals in everything from minicars to heavy-duty trucks, Bloomberg reported.
It also will try to ensure an earnings turnaround at Hino by restructuring. Hino is predicting a net loss of more than $87 million for fiscal year ended March 31.
The purchase is expected to be completed on Aug. 30. Transport Topics
GM Drops Share Buy in China Truck Firm; To Pursue Options
A General Motors (GM) spokesman said Tuesday that company has dropped its plan to buy a 34% stake in a Chinese truck manufacturer, but will look at other options to acquire part of it, Reuters reported.
GM had looked at acquiring the stake through buying into an initial public offering of B-class shares in Liuzhou Wuling Motors, which is based in southern China.
But the GM spokesman told Reuters that the China Securities Regulatory Commission urged GM not to take that route because of reforms the commission had made in the hard currency market for B shares of Chinese firms.
The spokesman said a deal is still in the works, but would not go through the B-share market. Transport Topics
ArvinMeritor Earnings Fall 64%
Vehicle parts supplier ArvinMeritor (ARM) posted a 64% percent drop in quarterly earnings as a decline in vehicle production and higher raw material and energy costs hurt results.
The maker of products including axles, brakes and transmissions reported fiscal second-quarter earnings of 41 cents per share, down from 87 cents per share last year. That was in line with lowered Wall Street estimates.
ArvinMeritor said it revised vehicle production outlook for North American Class 8 trucks down to 135,000 units from 160,000 because of a continued backlog of new and used vehicles in the market. Transport Topics
(Click here for the full press release.)
Utah Road Project Hits Bump
A plan to add extra lanes to U.S. Highway 6 through two Utah counties has hit a snag because of one county's air quality, the Associated Press reported.The state was planning to build through Wasatch and Utah counties, but Utah County is not allowed to add any highways since its air quality does not meet the Clean Air Act standards.
Since about 10 drivers per year are killed when they pass slow-moving trucks on the curves of the mountainous route, the Utah Department of Transportation is seeking passing lanes on what is known as Utah's deadliest highway.
UDOT officials are in the process of negotiating with federal officials to make an exception for the sake of safety. Transport Topics
New Study Supports Indiana Road Work
A new report on the need for a link between Evansville and Indianapolis in Indiana will likely outweigh other considerations surrounding the decision to build an extension to Interstate 69, the Associated Press reported.Cristine Klika, commissioner of the Indiana Department of Transportation, said the law requires the state to consider a "no build" alternative until the study is completed.
Klika said she expects a legal challenge to the extensions' environmental impact, and said a series of public hearings will be held on the study once it is completed.
Additional hearings would be held on an environmental impact statement when it is prepared. Transport Topics
